Inter-agency Nightmare
by Emi-Lynn
Summary: While trying to help an old friend, Gibbs gets himself and McGee into a situation they might not get out of alive. On the other hand, it might be the best thing that ever happened to him. Pre-slash. Mention of slash.
1. Chapter 1

**a/n - This is for the h/c April mini challenge on LJ. The requirements are that it be a crossover (thus it will be in the crossover section, not the main one) and I had four prompts to choose from. Glutton for punishment that I am, I chose to use all four - Apocalypse, corporal punishment, fighting and interrogation. NCIS is my main fandom, but I've been researching like mad. No spoilers for either show and even if you don't know much about one of them, you should be fine - as the two sides learn about the other, so will you. It's going to be a wild ride.**

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Inter-agency Nightmare

Gibbs stepped into the smokey bar, pausing a moment to let his eyes adjust to the dim light His old buddy from his days in the Corps was hunched over at a table in the corner. Being the middle of the day, Gibbs caught the bartender's eye and pointed out the coffee pot as he went by. Nodding, the other man poured a cup and set it on the table as Gibbs sat down.

"Dickerson, been a while."

The other man looked up, his eyes bloodshot and tired looking. "I need your help, Gibbs. I think something's happened to my boy."

"Bobby?" Gibbs briefly flashed on the curly haired boy with skinned knees that would chase Kelly around the yard whenever the unit got together.

"He wanted to make his own way in the world, not follow his old man's footsteps, so he went Air Force instead of the Corps. Been stationed in Colorado at the Mountain for the last eighteen months."

Gibbs leaned forward, resting his arms on the table. "Why do you think he's in trouble?"

"He's been calling at least once a week ever since his momma got sick, but the last two weeks – nothing. He even missed her birthday last Friday."

"You try calling him?"

"He's not answering his cell, hasn't returned any emails, missed his regular skype session with his sister. I even tried calling his CO. Bobby will be pissed about that, but I didn't know what else to do, Gibbs."

No matter the branch of the military, every young man knows that if your parents feel they have to call your commanding officer, you're going to hear about it. "What did he tell you, Rob?"

"Nothing. It's been a while since I've been in the Corps, but I still recognize an officer that's stonewalling. Something's going on at that base and it has something to do with Bobby."

Over the years, Gibbs had heard some pretty wild rumors about the base buried deep inside a mountain in Colorado, including some unexplained deaths, but he wasn't going to tell the distraught father about that. "There's a few Marine Corps security units there, but not enough to give me a direct line of communication." He held up his hand to stop Dickerson's argument before it could even start. "But, I will see what I can find out."

-NCIS-

It was a day of cold cases and paperwork which allowed Gibbs an afternoon of tackling the problem, but by the end of the normal workday he'd exhausted his resources and was no closer to finding out anything. As the rest of the team said their goodbyes and filed out, he held up a file folder and called out to one of them. "McGee, need you to stay a minute."

"Yeah, sure, Boss." Tim glanced over at his teammates who snickered as they continued on to the elevator. The young man was so obsessive about his paperwork, it was a rare day he was called back for an issue with a file and they enjoyed the look on his face. Glaring at them one last time as the elevator door closed, McGee turned his attention to the file Gibbs was handing him.

Tim was mentally reviewing the cases they'd closed recently as he opened the file. "Is this about my expense report on the Hernandez case? This... this isn't one of my reports. Is this a new case, Boss?"

"Not our jurisdiction, but..." Gibbs thought about the risks he was asking the other man to take and shook his head. "Never mind, McGee, this is my problem."

Ignoring the outreached hand, Tim continued to study what Gibbs had put together. "Why isn't the Air Force conducting their own investigation? There's no indication that he went AWOL, but if there was some sort of training accident, why the cover-up?" Tim finally looked up. "Who is he, Boss?"

"His dad and I were in the Corps together. Bobby is just a year older than Kelly." Gibbs' voice was low and Tim had to strain to hear it. "Rob and I used to joke that we'd be in-laws some day. He's a good kid, wouldn't take off, not while his mom's battling cancer."

Realizing how personal this was to Gibbs, McGee returned to his desk with the file. "Their security is pretty tight, it will probably take me a while and I'm not sure how far I can get without attracting attention."

"Whatever you can do, McGee – and, Tim?" Gibbs waited until he looked up, shocked at the rare use of his first name. "Thank you."

-NCIS-

Gibbs would never admit it to another living soul, but he loved watching McGee work. The younger man reacted so intently when given a puzzle to solve with his computer, his fingers flying across the keyboard. There was nothing Gibbs could do to help the search, but if McGee was going to pull an all-nighter helping a friend of Gibbs', then the least Gibbs could do was to stay and support him.

Several hours into the search, Gibbs left for a short while, bringing back dinner for the two of them. McGee gave an absent nod, his nose almost touching the the screen as he studied the encryption he was working through. It took the waving of a fresh cup of coffee under his nose that brought McGee's attention away from his work long enough to eat while his programs ran.

"Oh, thanks, Boss."

Gibbs smiled and patted McGee on the back. Yeah, he loved watching the younger man do what he was so good at. "No problem, eat while it's hot."

Sometime after 0300, Tim sat up straight, staring at his computer. "Oh, crap."

Gibbs had been dozing, but jumped to his feet. "What have you got?"

"Trouble." McGee was frantically trying to back out of the system he'd landed in, erasing his tracks as quickly as he could.

"Talk to me, McGee."

"He's part of a major top secret project. Presidential eyes only kind of project."

"Shit." Gibbs realized quickly that he'd asked McGee to commit what could be classified as treason. "Can you get clear?"

McGee hadn't broken a sweat doing this since the first time he'd hacked the CIA under Gibbs' orders, but he was sweating now. "Working on it."

Forty minutes later he sagged back in his seat and rubbed his face.

"Well?"

"I think I got out clean. If not, I left a circular trail that leads to nowhere – I hope.

"You hope?"

Raking his fingers through his hair, Tim stood and started to pace. "Their system, I've never seen anything like that, Boss. It was like a hybrid of standard government security protocols and something totally foreign." He thought about the files he'd seen and paled at the implication. "Actually beyond foreign."

Gibbs had to literally step into McGee's path to get him to stop. "What did you find?"

Tim shook his head. "I don't think I should tell you, Boss. No point in both of us going down for this."

"I'm the one that asked you to do this. If anybody is going down, it will be me. I'll make sure of it, Tim, so tell me what you found."

Again with his first name and McGee caved, looking around. "Not here, your office."

Gibbs didn't say a word, just led them to the elevator. Once they were between floors and he'd flipped the emergency switch, he turned back to McGee. "Now talk."

Tim's mouth opened and closed several times before he found the right words. "The Air Force has somehow acquired the technology to open wormholes to different planets in the galaxy."

"Planets?" Gibbs stared at him in shock.

"Populated planets, Boss. Aliens. And some of them I think we're at war with. Your friend's son was either killed or captured on the other side of the galaxy."

Gibbs was still staring. Part of him was convinced that McGee had somehow hacked into someone's bizarre science fiction novel and part of him... "Holy crap, McGee."

Now it was Gibbs' turn to pace as he shoved his fingers through his hair. Finally he stopped in front of McGee, a worried expression on his face. "If somebody were to specifically search your computer, could they find any traces of what you did?"

"Possibly." Tim chewed his lip and looked up when Gibbs grasped his shoulders. "My focus was on wiping the trail between the two agencies, Boss, but I still need to scrub my system."

That's what Gibbs had been afraid of. He remained in front of McGee, absently rubbing the other man's shoulders. "Okay, that's what you're going to do next, whatever you need to do to remove every trace. Scrub it, wipe it, replace the hard drive and take a sledgehammer to that one, whatever it it takes. Then you're going to be glued to me until we're absolutely sure you're in the clear. You got it?"

"Okay." Tim tried to look confident, but he couldn't hide the fear in his eyes.

Gibbs pulled him a little closer, resting his forehead against McGee's. "It's going to be all right, Tim." They stood like that for a few more moments before Gibbs straightened and flipped the switch to get the elevator moving again.

It was less than an hour to the start of the normal working day before McGee was satisfied that nothing was left to find anywhere. He looked up and nodded at Gibbs when the elevator doors opened. He looked over, expecting to find Ziva arriving early, or possibly Tony. Instead, what he saw were several Air Force officers and a handful of MP's.

"Oh, crap."


	2. Chapter 2

Colonel Jack O'Neill was not having a good week, let alone a good day. The negotiations on P3X-518 had gone to hell and three members of SG-5 were now being held hostage, the local inhabitants convinced that the humans were responsible for some technology that had been causing problems on the planet.

The problem was that not only were they not responsible for it, they couldn't sort out exactly what 'it' was. They'd been able to figure out it was some sort of alien computer, programmed to randomly attack the natives to keep them in line. Unfortunately, they hadn't been able to hack into the computer or deduce anything about the weapon system it controlled. Now, they had a security breech here on Earth. For the thousandth time Jack wondered why he didn't just take his well-earned retirement. Of course, the answer to that was a certain anthropologist with a brilliant mind and a wicked mouth who wasn't ready for retirement and needed Jack at his side to keep him safe.

He looked over at Carter, his second in command on the team, who was tapping away at her phone, in communication with Daniel and Teal'c, the other two members of their team. The civilian and the alien members of the team had stayed behind at the mountain while the military half of the team had flown out as soon as they discovered somebody asking questions about one of the hostages held on P3X-518. "Well?"

"We might be able to contain the situation, Sir. Gibbs is former Marine Corps, he served with Airman Dickerson's father."

O'Neill did feel for the families who were left wondering why their loved ones weren't calling home, he really did, but as the leader of SG1 he had orders to follow and a bigger picture to look at. "Then let's hope he didn't run this through channels, Carter."

Two MP's were stationed at the entrance, while the rest continued upstairs with Carter and O'Neill. The guards were shocked, but outranked, as the Air Force swarmed the building.

"He better be here, Carter." Jack leaned over to look at the picture on her phone one last time, seeing a man about his age. From what he'd learned about the man already, under different circumstances, they might have been good friends.

"According to the main gate, he's been here all night, Sir."

The elevator slowed to a stop. "All right, let's do this." He put on a pair of mirrored sunglasses as the doors opened and he strode out, Carter to his left, MP's flanking them to either side.

He recognized Gibbs instantly from his picture, but there was something about the other man with him that caught O'Neill's attention. Their arrival didn't surprise him, but it did frighten him. Curious, Jack let them talk first. It was Gibbs, stepping in front of his younger counterpart, that spoke first.

"I'm the one you want."

Jack glanced over at Carter, mentally urging her to play along. "Not so sure about that." Wanting to see how much he could rattle the younger man, Jack stepped around Gibbs and tapped his fingers on the first thing he reached – a computer tower. "Isn't that right, junior?"

Tim froze, not knowing what to do.

"So, Carter, what do we know about green eyes, here?"

Daniel had already sent her a brief bio on each of the team. "Timothy McGee, degrees from John Hopkins and MIT."

Jack let out a low whistle. "Pretty fancy degrees for a wanna-be FBI agent, Bucky. How come your boss is so hot to protect you?"

Tim tried to project a calm that he was definitely not feeling. "It's just the way he is."

Standing in back of Colonel O'Neill, Gibbs was silently seething. He'd been so focused on protecting McGee that he'd reacted like a rookie, accidentally putting McGee directly in the line of fire. While he tried to figure a way out, O'Neill continued to ask questions about McGee. "So, what kind of degrees does Bucky here have?"

Carter had been shocked by the answer, herself. "Bio-engineering and Computer Forensics."

"Computers? That's interesting." O'Neill thought about it for a minute. If he'd been in Gibbs' shoes, he would have asked... "So, kid, you try to get into our system after your boss struck out with his questions?"

There was one thing about Timothy McGee that all his friends knew – he couldn't lie worth a damn – so he didn't. "Prove it."

The younger man was reminding him more and more of Daniel Jackson and he looked over at Gibbs, letting a bit of humor show through. "Kid's got big brass ones, I'll give him that." Jack turned back towards McGee, but kept his eyes on Gibbs, using the mirrored lenses of his sunglasses to cover his actions. A flicker of pride and something more crossed Gibbs' face before the stoney expression returned.

"Oh, we will. Don't you worry about that." Jack nodded to the MP's and they moved close to take the two men into custody. When Gibbs tensed, Colonel O'Neill leaned closer. "We can do this the easy way or the hard way. What will it do to your agency if the two of you are dragged out of here in handcuffs and publicly charged with treason? What will it do to Timmy-boy's career?"

Outmaneuvered, at least for now, Gibbs nodded his acceptance and McGee stood. Shoulder to shoulder, they walked to the elevator, the MP's surrounding, but not touching, them. Once in the elevator, Gibbs laid a comforting hand on Tim's back and they looked at each other, words unnecessary.

_I'll get us out of this._

_I know. I trust you, Boss._

-NCIS-

Vance screeched to a halt, not bothering to shut off the engine or even shut the door. One of the guards came out to meet him. "They're already gone, Sir. The Air Force just came in and scooped them up."

"Damn it." The Director of NCIS dug around in his pocket, but he didn't have any toothpicks. "Gibbs, what in the hell have you gotten yourself into now?"

He took a few steps back towards his car, then stopped and spun around. "Wait a minute, 'them'? Who did Gibbs get tangled up in this, DiNozzo?"

"No, Sir, it was Agent McGee."

Vance swore once again and pulled out his phone, telling Abby to come straight to the bullpen when she arrived.

-NCIS-

Singing along with the music on his iPod, Tony danced his way off the elevator. He wasn't late, but he'd cut it close as usual. Ziva was standing in the middle of their desks when he came around the corner. "Well, good morning, Officer David. It's a beautiful morning, isn't it? And if we don't catch a case today, it's going to be a beautiful weekend."

When she didn't respond right away, he looked around the bullpen, noticing several absences. "Where's the Boss and Probie? And where's the Probie's computer?"

The Israeli woman shook her head. "I do not know, Tony. Did you notice that the guards downstairs were very distracted this morning?"

He'd been busy with his new recordings of Bond music and they'd just waved him through. "Didn't pay much attention to be honest."

Before he could question her, Director Vance leaned over the catwalk railing. "DiNozzo, David, need you both in my office."

Nothing was said until the office was secured, which made the absence of Gibbs and McGee even more ominous. Vance had a toothpick clamped firmly in his teeth and it was already frayed.

"Sir?"

Vance started speaking before DiNozzo could say anything else. "Sometime yesterday, Gibbs started a personal investigation into a missing airman. The airman was apparently working on something top secret and Gibbs' questions attracted the wrong attention. Early this morning, Air Force security arrived and took Gibbs and McGee into custody. They have not been formally charged, but the investigation is for treason."

"No way. There's no way in hell that the Boss would commit treason and McGee..." Tony swallowed hard at the thought of the kid he'd trained facing something like this. "You know McGee's purer than the newly fallen snow."

The Director did know, unfortunately it wasn't that simple. "I know, but in this case, just asking the questions is something that certain people consider treason."

"Why McGee?" It was the first time the Mossad liaison had spoken since they'd arrived in Vance's office. "If it was Gibbs that caught their attention, why did they take McGee, too?"

"And where's his computer? Did they take it?"

"No. The only reason they would have taken McGee is if they thought he was involved. I've got Miss Sciuto going through his computer to see exactly what Gibbs has gotten them into." Vance leaned back in his chair and rubbed his forehead. "Right now I don't have a clue how we're going to get them out of it, whatever it is."


	3. Chapter 3

"Flyboys and their fancy planes." Gibbs smirked as he was escorted onto the Lear jet behind McGee. They weren't allowed to sit together, but they were each handed a bottle of sparkling water. He smirked again when Tim spoke for the first time.

"What, no lemon?"

Rolling his eyes, Colonel O'Neill went to the front of the plane and started their pre-flight check. Usually Carter went up with him, but today she stayed with their guests. By the time they'd reached cruising altitude, Gibbs was snoring. Carter watched him for a few minutes, then she turned back to McGee. "For someone accused of treason, he's awfully relaxed."

"Of course, because he's right." Tim followed Gibbs' lead and leaned back, closing his eyes. Samantha wasn't satisfied.

"How do you know he's right this time?"

McGee didn't bother to open his eyes. "Because the Boss is always right." Behind Carter, Gibbs smiled, not missing a beat.

-NCIS-

"Well?" Vance's last hope faded as Abby shook her head and behind him, Tony and Ziva sagged in disbelief.

"Come on, Abs, there has to be something."

She shook her head again. "No, Tony, there's not. It's like when your grandmother cleans house and she picked up every single knickknack and wipes under them and then wipes every inch of the knickknack before she sets it back down. McGee's computer is spotless. Every single file that he's suppose to have is there, right where it's supposed to be, but there's absolutely nothing else there. I had to check the serial number to make sure it's the right hard drive, that's how clean it is."

"He scrubbed it."

"Yeah, and after he scrubbed it, he sterilized it. Big time. He's been chasing criminals through their hard drives for years, he knows tricks that no one else does." Abby chewed on her lip as she thought about it. "Well, I don't think anybody else does."

"It is too clean." Ziva crossed her arms as she stared at the tower. "If they get a search warrant and seize his computer, they will know that he was hiding something."

While she was thinking as an operative, Tony was thinking as an investigator. "Maybe, but with no proof, they can't do anything about it."

"Perhaps, but they could continue to push for answers. McGee does not lie well, how long can he keep that up? My sources tell me that this O'Neill is very much like Gibbs in that respect. He does not give up."

"Great." Leon saw his family weekend slipping away. "I'll see if I can get the SecNav to put some pressure on, get the Air Force to back off, at least a little bit." Not looking forward to that conversation, Vance turned on his heel and left the sub-basement. As soon as he was gone, Abby burrowed against DiNozzo.

"Tony, I'm really worried. This could get bad, really bad."

-NCIS-

Behind his calm facade, Jethro Gibbs was worried. He'd managed a few catnaps while McGee had worked to track down Bobby Dickerson, but the younger agent had been up, working hard for almost thirty hours straight now. Gibbs knew he had to be running on fumes and a skilled interrogator would use that to his advantage.

Now they were in Colorado Springs, after landing at a military airport, where it was cold, the air was thinner and, judging from McGee's struggles, the pollen count was very high. Gibbs laid his hand on Tim's back, glaring at O'Neill, challenging him to say something. O'Neill didn't and McGee just burrowed closer to Gibbs, enjoying the warmth and the silent support.

Now in a jeep and being driven to an unknown destination, Gibbs felt better having McGee tucked up against him. Their weapons had been left behind and they'd been searched already, but the MP's hadn't found everything. Gibbs wasn't planning on doing anything stupid, but he'd do whatever was necessary to protect the younger man.

The entrance to the Cheyenne Mountain Complex was huge and intimidating, especially when in a jeep surrounded by armed guards, but McGee couldn't help but look around. They were led to an elevator and as they descended, he wondered just how close to the secret labs and equipment they would be.

The corridor they were escorted down looked like many other military bases, much to Tim's disappointment, but when he and Gibbs were separated, he started to panic. "Umm, where are you taking us?"

O'Neill gave a rigid smile. "You'll each be interviewed – separately. Might take us a while, we're kinda busy around here. The small room he was placed in reminded him of the interrogation rooms back at NCIS, but there was no mirrored wall hiding observers, only a small camera up in the corner. Two guards were left outside the door and the last thing McGee saw as the door closed was Gibbs being taken away. Feeling suddenly exhausted, Tim sank down in the chair and buried his face in his hands.

Gibbs was taken down a series of hallways that twisted and turned. He carefully counted the corners and mapped the layout in his mind. Nothing was marked, but a scuff on one of the walls confirmed that he'd been taken in a circle at one point and the room he was placed in was only one hall over from where McGee was being held. Dismissing the two guards out side the room, he listened carefully for any snippet of conversation or sound of movement in the halls.

-NCIS-

"Well, Colonel, I sent you to Washington for one possible suspect and you brought me back two. Why?"

"Happy birthday." O'Neill grinned at General Hammond before turning serious. "They weren't surprised when we got there, but that kid, McGee, was scared and Gibbs was ready to fall on his sword the second we stepped off the elevator."

"To protect McGee? Again, why? Is he someone important?"

The full dossiers had been waiting for Jack when they arrived and he set them on Hammond's desk. "Well, he is the son of an Admiral, but he's also some sort of computer genius."

Hammond put the pieces together the same way O'Neill had. "You think he tried to get into our system."

"And since we weren't allowed to seize any physical evidence..."

"You brought back the kid. All right, Colonel, have our guys go through our computers with a fine toothed comb. If there was an attempt at a breech, there should be some sort of record. Find it."

Once he was alone in his office again, Hammond leaned back and pinched the bridge of his nose. Whoever this Gibbs was, he had enough friends in high places to make their investigation difficult. Determined to find out why, he straightened up and started reading the files Jack had left him.

-NCIS-

Gibbs glanced down at his watch, confirming how long he'd been alone in the room, and let out a yell. "Hey, Airman." A few seconds later, the door opened and one of the guards stuck his head in.

"Sir?"

"We gonna get fed anytime soon?"

"I can have dinner sent up, Sir. We have either pork chops or fish today. Which would you like?"

"Do I want the fish?"

The Airman shuddered and winced. "Not really, Sir."

Gibbs grinned at his reaction. "Then I'll take the pork chop, and Airman?"

"Yes, Sir?"

"I work for a living, don't call me sir. Make sure McGee gets fed, too, and see if you've got a doctor around here that can give him something for his allergies."

"Yes, Si.. Agent Gibbs. I'll take care of it." The Airman started to pull away, the turned back. "Off the record, Agent Gibbs, thanks for caring about what happened to Bobby. He's a good guy." When Gibbs nodded, the Airman closed the door.

The door closed and Gibbs sat back pleased with his progress. He'd confirmed that the real workings of the base were below their current level and made a personal connection with one of his guards.

Out in the hallway, O'Neill nodded in approval to the Airman. He was pleased with their progress. Gibbs had acknowledged that he knew about Robert Dickerson and was beginning to trust one of his guards.


	4. Chapter 4

"Here, I was told to make sure you were fed." A tray clanked on the table

Tim raised up from where he'd been dozing on the table to rub his face. "Pork chops?"

"Believe me, if we were going to torture you, you'd been given the fish."

The voice at the door caught McGee's attention and he turned. The new arrival was obviously a civilian from his longer hair and casual demeanor. "Let me guess, they cook it until it turns into a piece of rubber."

"You've met our cook, then. I'm Daniel, by the way."

McGee watched as the other man slid into a seat across from him. "I'm Tim, but you already knew that. So what's a civilian doing interrogating a prisoner?"

The door opened once again and the Airman brought in a second tray, setting it in front of Daniel. "Here you go, Dr. Jackson."

"Thank you, Airman." Once the Airman left, he turned back to Tim. "Just hated to see you eat alone."

For a military facility the food was surprisingly good, more like the officer's mess than what the enlisted would eat and much better than what Tim expected them to waste on a suspect. However, it had been a long time since the take out Gibbs had brought him, so Tim ate every scrap that was on his plate.

Daniel also ate silently, watching the other man. Despite the slight trembling in his hands, McGee ate slowly, carefully cutting his meat, precisely setting his knife on the edge of the plate before taking each bite. They had taken a gamble giving the two prisoners real silverware, but Jack had wanted to see what they'd do. McGee, at least, was biding his time it seemed. Daniel spoke just as McGee finished his last bite. "Why'd you do it?"

Tim very carefully laid down his knife and fork, pressing his hands against the table to hide just how scared he really was. "Do what, exactly?"

Without being summoned, an Airman slipped into the room to remove the trays, which told McGee that someone was actively watching what was being recorded. Once the trays were removed, he laced his fingers together in front of him, forcing himself to keep them relaxed. Instead, he pressed his toes down hard inside his shoes as an unseen physical outlet for his fear as he waited.

"So it was just a coincidence that you were at your desk all night after your boss got himself into something he shouldn't have?"

Tim had to stop himself from telling Daniel that Gibbs didn't believe in coincidences. "My boss is a taskmaster, what can I say." Tim remembered Gibbs' rule about always being specific when you lie. "It's easier to do maintenance on the computers when not many people are using them."

"So that's the job your fancy degrees got you? You're tech support?" Neither of them had noticed Jack's arrival and he hitched his hip up on the table so he could look down at McGee. "Kinda thought the son of an Admiral would have higher aspirations."

His toes were beginning to cramp. "Everyone on the team has their strengths. When we're not out in the field, I handle the computers. Sometimes that means defragging them and backing up the files. Whatever it takes to make sure the team can get the job done."

Daniel glanced up at Jack before asking the next question. "Defragging and backing up files is pretty basic, why doesn't he do it himself?"

McGee snorted before he could stop himself. "Let's just say that Gibbs is kinda old school. His idea of defragging would be putting a bullet through the hard drive."

It took some effort, but O'Neill ignored the muffled laugh from Dr. Jackson. "I see."

Schooling his features, Daniel continued the questioning. "According to you, you spent the night just doing basic maintenance on your hard drive."

"Except to use the head, I don't think I stepped away from the computer all night. Not until you dragged us out this morning."

"And Gibbs stayed all night, too?"

"He made the dinner run, brought back coffee a few times. Other than that, I think he was at his desk most of the night." Tim shrugged. "I get my nose buried in the computer and don't pay too much attention." Finally finished, Tim quieted, waiting to see what they would do next.

O'Neill nodded slowly before brushing off a non-existent piece of lint from Tim's jacket. "So your boss just sits there all night, watching you work. I'd think that would get on your nerves. I know it would mine."

"Agent Gibbs is the most dedicated man I know. First one in every morning, last one to leave at night. If one of us stays to work, he's usually around someplace."

"So, he doesn't trust you."

The barked laugh was a surprise to the two interrogators. "If he didn't trust me, he wouldn't have put me on the team. Gibbs will never ask any of us to do anything he wouldn't be willing to do, himself. If one of the team has to pull an all-nighter, he's not going to go home and get a good night's sleep. It's not his style."

"Okay, then what is his style?" O'Neill leaned closer, but McGee didn't blink. Either he was too tired or he'd spent a lot of time with people trying to intimidate him. Being a fellow geek, Daniel suspected the latter as he continued to watch.

McGee might have been feeling a little reckless, but he still chose his words carefully. "He's always there for us, watches our back. Once a Marine, always a Marine and Marines don't leave their people behind."

When he saw the slight twitch in O'Neill's eye, Tim knew he'd won that round. He sat back and waited, not surprised when O'Neill stormed out.

Once it was just the two of them and the camera in the corner, Daniel shook his head. "We're not the enemy here."

"But you think we are." Now it was Tim's turn to shake his head. "Listen, we fight crooks and terrorists every day, that's what we do. We protect the interests of the Navy. When someone or something threatens the men and women of the Navy or the Marine Corps, we're the ones that step up to the plate and make sure they get a chance to come home to their families. If we can't do that, then we avenge their loss and make sure it never happens again."

"Is that a threat, Agent McGee?"

Only if you're the enemy after all, Dr. Jackson."

-NCIS-

In an office several floors down, the two games of verbal chess were being very carefully watched. "Opinions, Major Carter?"

She thought for a moment. "Permission to speak freely, Sir?"

Hammond nodded. He had a close knit unit, but he always appreciated the question. "Of course."

There was a sharp rap on the door and Jack O'Neill stormed in, so Carter waited for him to sit down. "From everything I've been able to put together, Leroy Jethro Gibbs is a real straight shooter. He's devoted his entire life to this country, first as a Marine and then as a NCIS agent. He's probably earned more awards and citations that they rest of the agency put together, but he never shows up at the award ceremonies to pick them up. He may be short on tact, but he's no threat."

The General had already come to a similar conclusion. "Colonel, your thoughts?"

Jack had been doing his own checking, in addition to observing. "Honestly, I kinda like the guy."

"Be that as it may," General Hammond bit back a smile. "The Joint Chiefs will probably require a bit more than that."

"We've been stalling the families of our missing guys and Dickerson's old man served with Gibbs in the Gulf. Guess we shouldn't have been too surprised he went to Gibbs when he didn't hear from his son."

"We're lucky he didn't go to the press." Sam paused, debating if she should tell the two men about a conversation she'd overheard before SG5 gated to P3X-518. Hammond picked up on her internal debate.

"Is there something else I should know about, Major?"

She pursed her lips together for a moment, then pushed ahead. "Did you know that Airman Dickerson's mother is terminally ill?"

Hammond closed his eyes for a moment, remembering his own wife, lost to cancer. "No, I didn't know that. You think that's why his father was pulling strings, trying to get some answers?"

"Bobby's leave was supposed to start as soon as SG5 returned from their mission. I checked, his mother's birthday was after they were taken hostage."

Jack hated to be the bad guy, but sometimes he had no choice. "Listen, I feel for the guy, I really do. But he's not the only hostage. If we give his father special privileges, what do we do about the rest of the families? There's only so long that 'the mission is currently taking longer than anticipated' is going to fly."

"Suggestions?"

Carter thought she had a solution. "Gibbs was military, he will follow orders, right?"

"Just order him to keep his mouth shut while the negotiations continue? What if we don't get our people back alive?"

O'Neill had serious concerns, but so did General Hammond. "What about Agent McGee? We still don't even know the extent of his involvement in all this." He picked up his phone and called for an update on the computer checks. Five minutes later a heavy-set man with thick glasses was standing in front of his desk.

"We've gotten through about sixty percent of the system, Sir. We'll be working through the night to complete the survey, but..."

"But what, Mr. Edwards?"

"I think we have a bigger problem that Agent McGee. I still don't know if he's been I our system, but somebody has."

Jack frowned as he thought about it. "How do you know it wasn't him?"

"Because the last breech was less than five hours ago, after he was in our custody... and I'm not sure how to track it."

"Well, shit." Jack winced and turned to the General. "Sorry, Sir."

"Understood, Colonel."

"Sir, if I may make a suggestion?" When three sets of eyes looked at her, Major Carter continued. "This is what Agent McGee specializes in."

"You're suggesting that we just hand him the keys to the kingdom, Carter?"

Jack thought about what was happening on P3X-518 and the computer program they couldn't break into. "She's suggesting more than that."

Hammond knew what they were both saying. "Well, if we're going to give a civilian full access to our most top secret files and then ask him to solve a problem on another problem, I want to make sure he's not only our best but our only option. Mr. Edwards, continue your survey into the computer breeches. Major Carter, you and Dr. Jackson find out everything there is to know about our two guest."

"And me, Sir?"

"They're going to be our guests for a while, Colonel. You get to play host. Find them accommodations for the night and get them settled in. It's going to be a long weekend, people."

* * *

**a/n - Not going to drag this out forever. It would be fun, but the challenge is due soon and Gibbs and McGee have to be back in DC by Monday.**


	5. Chapter 5

Keeping a blank look on his face, Gibbs looked up when the door opened again. Colonel O'Neill was standing there, but he didn't come into the room. Instead, he crooked a finger and turned, expecting Gibbs to follow him. Gibbs did, but looked down the corridor to the room where he believed McGee was being held in. O'Neill smirked, but didn't comment as Gibbs made sure they knew that he knew exactly where he was. Their little ring around the rosie hadn't tripped him up at all.

With two escorts, they entered the elevator, this time a different one that went further down into the mountain. Gibbs filed that away for later. It would take two different elevators to get back up to ground level, an extra security measure he hadn't counted on.

Gibbs remained quiet, following O'Neill as the elevator stopped and the group continued moving. It wasn't until he was led into a tidy room with two twin beds that he turned to look the Colonel in the eye.

Despite what he'd said in the General's office, Jack didn't loosen up at all. "It's late, rather than causing an inter-agency squabble, you'll be housed here for the night. However, don't think those guards won't shoot if you try anything funny."

"Where's McGee?"

"Don't worry, I'll be bringing him along shortly." Before Gibbs could ask anything else, Jack turned and left the room.

Gibbs heard the door lock from the outside, but he was already surveying the room. No windows, of course, but well designed lighting that gave the room a comfortable glow. Two beds, similar to many military installations. They were basic, but not overly comfortable. Gibbs had certainly slept in far worse, but the taller McGee would probably find them a bit cramped.

Folded up neatly at the foot of each bed were dark green BDU's with no unit patches on the shoulders and black t-shirts. Underneath those were boxers and socks while boots were tucked under the beds. Gibbs checked the adjoining bathroom and found a stack of towels and two fully stocked kits. Whatever was happening, it appeared that he and McGee would be the guests of the Air Force for the next few days at least.

While he was poking around the bathroom, looking for listening devices and cameras, he heard the door open again. He returned to the main room just in time to see the door closing behind an obviously exhausted McGee.

"Tim?"

"Hey, Boss."

Gibbs' eyes widened as McGee limped into the room. He moved quickly to the other man's side and wrapped a supporting arm around his waist, leading him to the bathroom.

"Boss?"

"Shh." Once they were in the tiny room, Gibbs turned on the fan and the shower, creating enough background noise to make it impossible for any omnidirectional mic to pick up on their conversation. "You're hurt, what did they do to you?"

Tim was almost embarrassed as he explained about the interview and how he'd hidden his fears by clamping down on his feet instead of anything visible, but Gibbs was proud of the way the younger man had kept his wits about him under the circumstances.

"You did fine, McGee. Take a hot shower, that'll help you relax, and then try to get a good night's sleep. Okay?"

"They're still looking at their computers, trying to figure out if I've been in them." Tim looked around at the fully stocked bathroom. "They're not going to let us go, are they?"

Gibbs cupped his cheek, rubbing his thumb over the soft skin. Even after more than a day, the facial hair on McGee's face was soft under his hand. "They haven't thrown us in the brig yet, that's a good sign. You've been on the other end of an interrogation, you know how the game is played."

"I know." Tim sighed as he thought about it. "I just get the feeling that there's more going on. It's like they're watching us, testing to see what we'll do."

"Whatever it is, we can't do any more about it tonight." Gibbs had a sneaking suspicion that McGee was right, but they were going to have to wait for more of the puzzle.

"You got fed, right?" Tim nodded and Gibbs continued. "Take your shower and then get some rest. We probably have an even longer day ahead of us tomorrow." He backed off and eventually left the room, but not before he managed to get a good look at McGee's backside in the mirror.

-NCIS-

The hot shower did help him relax, but walking across the cold floor caused his toes to cramp up again. By the time he'd walked to the bed, his toes were twisted up and he was once again limping. Grateful that Gibbs had already removed the stack of clothes and hung the BDU's for him, Tim stumbled to the bed and fell across it.

Gibbs moved to his side and helped him swing his legs up onto the bed before sitting down and lifting one of his feet. Before McGee could figure out what Gibbs had planned, the older man started to massage the tight muscles. Usually Tim's feet were very ticklish, but the firm pressure had him instantly melting. Gibbs chuckled, but didn't say a word as he worked the muscles in first Tim's left foot, then the right. Once the massage was finished, Tim was deeply asleep and Gibbs gently shifted him to get him under the blankets, brushing back his hair before retreating to his own bed.

-NCIS-

Hunched over the monitors in another room, Jack leaned back in his chair while Carter smiled. He looked up at her. "What?"

"When they're alone, Gibbs looks at McGee the same way you look at Daniel."

"What? We're careful. Aren't we?"

While Jack looked closer at the two men on the screen, she smiled and left the room, running into Daniel and Teal'c in the hallway. Daniel nodded and continued on in as Teal'c fell into step next to Carter.

"Teal'c."

"Samantha Carter." They walked around the corner before he brushed his hand against hers. "It is an interesting circumstance we find ourselves in."

"You watched McGee's interrogation, what did you think?"

Teal'c thought for a moment as they walked. "He appears to be an honorable man. He reminds me of Daniel Jackson. He was quite adamant in his defense of the one they call Gibbs. As I said, he reminds me of..."

"Daniel, when he's defending Jack?" They exchanged a smile and he followed her into her room.

-NCIS-

"Hey, you gonna watch them sleep all night?" Daniel wrapped his arms around Jack's waist and nuzzled his neck."

Jack didn't turn away from the screen, but he leaned back into Daniel. "Sam's figured out about us."

"Sam's known for months." Daniel nipped at Jack's ear. "You just figure that out?"

"Months? Does anyone else know?"

"I don't think Tullis down in research knows yet, but he hasn't even figured out Sam and Teal'c are together."

"Sam and Teal'c? When did that happen?"

"Come to bed and I'll tell you all about it." Smiling, Daniel led Jack out of the room, holding the door for the guard that would watch the cameras that night.

-NCIS-

"Go home, DiNozzo."

Stubbornly, Tony shook his head. "The Boss..."

Vance hitched his leg up on the edge of Tony's desk. "Gibbs and McGee are the guests of the Air Force for the next few days at least. If the Air Force decides to press charges the SecNav will put some pressure on them, but in the meantime, they're just going to have to sweat it out for a while."

"There's got to be something we can do."

"There is. Don't piss the Air Force off any more than Gibbs already has. Go home, and tell Ziva to leave her contacts alone, too. While you're at it, make sure Abby doesn't try anything with her friend at NASA either. We can't do anything to help Gibbs and McGee, but we can try to not make it any worse. Understood?"

"Understood." Of course, understanding and liking were two entirely different matters.


	6. Chapter 6

"McGee, wake up."

Tim's eyes snapped open, if nothing else but from the shock of the gentle request. The room was almost pitch black but Gibbs made no effort to turn on a light as he leaned close, whispering in Tim's ear.

"They're going to come for us, soon. If you are offered a deal to get out of this, I want you to take it."

"Boss, no." Tim reached up blindly, finding Gibbs' chest and latching onto his t-shirt. "If you're telling me to sacrifice you to save myself..."

Gibbs was so close that his lips were brushing Tim's cheek as he talked. "They've got witnesses to the fact that I was asking questions, but they can't do much to me about that. But if they still suspect that you were in their system, they could hang onto you for a very long time, Tim."

"I don't care." Tim turned towards him enough that now Gibbs could feel Tim's lips. "I'm not walking away from you – ever."

"Damn it." Gibbs grabbed his face, planning on shaking some sense into him, but they ended up forehead to forehead, leaning against each other. "Damn it."

-NCIS-

"Well, Mr. Edwards?"

"We completed the last of the sweep an hour ago, Sir. I can find no evidence that Agent McGee was in our computer at all."

Edwards did not look happy, which surprised the General. "Why is this a problem?"

"Everything is clean of his footprints, General Hammond. Even the non-classified files that he had full access to. Either he sat at his computer for an entire night next to Agent Gibbs and never even ran a search on even the name of the mountain, or he's so good that we can't track him. If that's the case, he's a hundred times better than whoever is trying to get into our files."

General Hammond watched the other man for a moment. "You want us to ask for his help."

"Yes, Sir." Edwards' head bobbed up and down as he prattled on in relief. "The NID has been trying to get their hands on our knowledge of alien technology for months now. We've suspected that they had a mole here in the mountain, but if they've found a way into our computer files, that's even worse. Because of the threat from the NID, we can't ask the Pentagon for assistance because that would actually support the NID's claim that we don't have the resources to handle the security for our mandate without their help."

"And you think Agent McGee can confirm that it's the NID worming into our system?"

"Yes, Sir. Hacking has never been my specialty, but I've done some checking and Agent McGee is well known for both his skills in tracking hackers and being a hacker, himself. Apparently, he's the whitest hat of the white hats."

"Understood, Mr. Edwards. We'll take your recommendation under advisement." After Edwards left, Hammond turned to O'Neill, who'd been sitting quietly off to the side. "I believe this fits with your plan, Colonel."

Jack stood, ready to get started. "Like a glove, General Hammond, like a well designed glove."

-NCIS-

It wasn't a Marine Corps Combat Utility Uniform, but Gibbs still found it oddly familiar as he smoothed down the jacket and bloused the pant legs over his boots. McGee followed his lead and finished just as the door opened. Four guards entered while O'Neill stood in the doorway. "Agent McGee, if you will allow our boys to accompany you, we have some more questions."

Gibbs gave him a serious look as the guards herded him out the door before he was locked in again. "Damn it, McGee, save yourself."

-NCIS-

Tim wasn't handcuffed this time either, but he felt much more like a prisoner as he was escorted upstairs and back to the small room he'd spent most of the day before locked in. He sat in his chair from yesterday, while O'Neill spun the other chair around before straddling it. "You got yourself into some hot water here, kid, but I can offer you a way out."

"Yeah? What's that?" Tim glared defiantly at him. "Besides, I haven't even heard exactly what I'm being charged with."

"Why don't we start with treason and go from there, but if you help us, we might just forget the whole thing."

Tim leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest. "And if I don't?"

Jack gave him a smile. Before they put their entire plan into action, he had to see just what the young man was made of. "Let's just say that you really don't want to see our prison. It'll make Gitmo look like a five star resort."

"And Gibbs?"

"What about him?"

"I'm not helping you unless you guarantee he will be freed and no charges will be filed against him."

"That's more important that saving your own skin?" Jack watched as McGee dug his heels in. "So, what is he to you?"

Tim thought for a moment how to describe his relationship with the older man and smiled. "Everything."

O'Neill leaned back, matching Tim, and smiled.

-NCIS-

Gibbs only had a few minutes alone before another squad of Airmen arrived for him. This time it was Major Carter in charge. She smiled and tilted her head in greeting. "Agent Gibbs, the General would like to see you."

They returned to the elevator and descended even further down into the mountain. Gibbs didn't say anything, but he looked around carefully as he was escorted into the heart of the facility. Finding himself standing in front of General Hammond's desk, he immediately stood at parade rest.

"Agent Gibbs."

"Sir."

"You've cost me a great deal of time and resources, Agent Gibbs, and given us a strange dilemma." Hammond pointed out a chair and Gibbs sat as requested. Ramrod straight, he risked a quick look around. The red phone that was a direct line to the president was a surprise, but Gibbs didn't visually react.

Hammond continued, watching Gibbs' reactions closely. "As I was saying, you and your young man have put us in an interesting predicament."

Gibbs' eyes widened when McGee was added to the equation. "General, Sir, I fully accept responsibility for my actions, but Agent McGee is not part of this. The decision to investigate Airman Dickerson's disappearance was mine and mine alone. I will gladly accept any punishment you see fit, but McGee is not part of this."

"Because he was following your orders?"

"As I said, my responsibility."

Instead of answering, Hammond turned the computer monitor on his desk and replayed the conversation that had occurred earlier in the small interrogation room upstairs. Gibbs cursed under his breath when he heard McGee willingly sacrifice his own shot at freedom for Gibbs, but his answer as to what Gibbs was to him took his breath away.

Gibbs turned his attention back to Hammond to see what he was going to do, but it was apparent that the General was waiting for something. Gibbs got his answer a few minutes later when O'Neill walked in with McGee. "Tim."

His name was not quite a whisper, almost just a breath, but Tim heard it and looked at Gibbs, a soft expression on his face. Somehow, admitting how much Gibbs meant to him had been freeing in ways he couldn't imagine. A chair was brought in and he sat next to Gibbs, managing to scoot it a little closer in the process. Gibbs didn't pull back, resting his hand on Tim's back as they both looked at Hammond while O'Neill perched on the corner of the desk.

Hammond clasped his hands together and leaned forward on his arms, taking them both in. "Despite what is sometimes necessary, I've always believed you attract more flies with honey than vinegar, so I'm going to cut right to the chase. You're good, Agent McGee. One of the best we've ever dealt with when it comes to computers. You got in and our of our network without a trace. However, you need to work on your poker face. We saw the security tapes from your agency. We might not have the evidence, but I can tell the exact moment you discovered you were in over your head."

The two men glanced at each other, neither one had considered that the Air Force would be able to access the security feed from the bullpen that night. Gibbs squeezed the back of Tim's neck. "As you said, there's no evidence."

General Hammond agreed. "No, there's not, but in looking for evidence against Agent McGee, we uncovered a larger problem – one that we'd like his help with in exchange for completely dropping our investigation against the both of you. And if we're lucky, it might help us rescue Airman Dickerson and several others."

Another quick glance, but McGee was already nodding. "How can I help, Sir?"

Jack tugged on a file folder that he was partially sitting on. "First, you need to each sign one of these non-disclosure agreements. You break this agreement and you'll get to see our brig first-hand, and that includes talking about whatever goodies you saw in our computer files."

Biting his lip, Tim nodded again and took the pen O'Neill was holding out for him. As soon as he was finished, Gibbs took the pen from him and signed his own copy of the form. Once they were finished, O'Neill gathered the forms and handed them back to the General, who looked pleased. "All right, gentlemen, welcome to Stargate Command."


	7. Chapter 7

"DiNozzo." The team was not scheduled, but Vance wasn't at all surprised to find him sitting at his desk. Before he could ask, the back elevator opened for Ziva, who was apparently delivering breakfast downstairs. "David."

"Sir." Now standing next to Tony, Ziva nodded her own greeting, but didn't say anything.

"Would I be correct in assuming that Dr. Mallard and Miss Sciuto just happened to chose today to come in and catch up on their paperwork?" Some days Leon felt more like a kindergarten teacher than the director of a national agency. "I've heard from the SecNav. Call everyone up to my office, I'm only saying this once."

It didn't take long before the group was gathered in Vance's office, eager for word. He looked around at the worried faces as he leaned back in his chair. "As I've said, I've heard from the SecNav. Gibbs and McGee will not be charged with treason..."

He had to wait for the shouts to die down and for them to be ready to listen again. "However, they will be staying with the Air Force for a little longer."

"Why?" As usual, Tony was the spokesman for the group.

Vance knew this was coming. "In exchange for the charges being dropped, McGee has agreed to help them with something. Gibbs, of course, is staying there to watch his back."

"What in the hell did Probie get the Boss tangled up in? What can he do that the Air Force can't?"

"First off, DiNozzo, it was Gibbs that got them into this, not McGee. It was this agreement that got them out of it."

Abby chewed on her lip as she thought it through. "So, they're out of it, but not actually out of it? That doesn't make any sense."

Before he spoke, Vance activated the room security, putting up the barrier that would prevent anyone or anything from listening in. "Whatever they stumbled onto, even I don't have the clearance to be read into it. It's not just Air Force and they answer directly to the President. The fact that McGee is working with them and the two of them haven't been shot tells me that Gibbs and McGee have managed to earn some pretty highly placed trust."

Ducky knew immediately what the Director was saying. "An attempt by any one of us to find out more will undermine that hard earned trust. For Jethro and Timothy's sake, we must stay completely out of it. Their lives may very well depend on it."

"I don't like it."

Ziva laid her hand on Tony's arm. "We do not have a choice."

-NCIS-

"It's time you see what we do here." General Hammond stood and led them out of his office and into the briefing room. Tim stopped and stared at the etched glass window he'd been too nervous to notice on his way in.

"A star chart?"

Jack gave him a friendly nudge to keep him going. "You ain't seen nothing yet, Bucky." They all followed Hammond to the large window that overlooked the Embarkation Level. Hammond let them just stare for a few moments.

"Gentlemen, this is the Stargate. As you'll see in just a moment, this is the gateway to the universe."

"Wow."

"Oh, yeah." Gibbs had to agree with McGee A massive ring was the center feature of the room, made of an unknown substance. Metal filled the center in a spiral pattern and a ramp led up to it. A voice came over the intercom.

_Inbound traveler._

As they watched and listened, a remote transmission code was received and the center of the ring spiraled open. Both men were dumbfounded when the wormhole opened up and a group of soldiers stepped through.

_Close the iris._

The wormhole shimmered for a moment longer and then collapsed as the metal shield spun back into place. Jack grinned at the stunned expressions. "The iris is to keep out unfriendlies. They're kinda like door to door salesmen – you let one of them get a foot in the door and they just keep coming."

Gibbs nodded, but he hadn't looked away yet. "Are there a lot of unfriendlies out there?"

"Oh, more than you can imagine. There's some good guys out there, too." Jack reached out and turned McGee away from the observation window, herding him up to the computer level. "There's also some unfriendlies right here on Earth that want to get their hands on alien technology for their own purposes. You ever heard of the NID?"

Following along behind them, Gibbs nodded as McGee gave a snort. "Yeah, they make the CIA look like alter boys."

"That's a pretty good way to describe them. In fact, I might borrow that someday, thank you. Anyway, while we were looking for you, we found someone else had been playing in our sandbox."

Exiting the elevator, McGee continued the analogy. "You want the bully kicked out of the playground."

Jack nodded enthusiastically as he punched in his security code for the door. "Yeah, sure, that works."

Carter was waiting for them with another man. "Welcome aboard, this is Mr. Edwards, who is in charge of our computer system."

Edwards immediately shook Tim's hand. "Agent McGee, it is such an honor. We've tracked the activity to the files about P3X-518, so it is especially troubling."

McGee was already sitting down and familiarizing himself with the system, but Gibbs turned to O'Neill for an answer. Jack looked worried. "That's the planet where the members of Dickerson's team are being held hostage."

"So, they're alive?"

"At the moment, but we're only about twelve hours away from the deadline."

"Demands?"

Jack glanced down. Even though McGee was already working on the computer he was listening intently, so Jack decided to kill two birds with one stone. "Okay, short version. Many thousands of years ago, a race called the Goa'uld came to Earth, looking for host bodies. They took humans from all over the planet and spread them out throughout the galaxy, so they'd have a steady supply of host bodies, slaves and servants."

"Hosts?"

"Those are humans on the other planets? That originated on Earth?"

Jack shrugged, wishing he'd asked Daniel to sit in on this. "Okay, Dr. Jackson is much better than I am at explaining all of this, but..."

Carter exchanged a look with Edwards and cut in. "No disrespect, Colonel, but we're all better at explaining this than you are." She turned to McGee. "Yes, the natives on P3X-518 are humans, descended from what we believe are one of the tribes of Central America. They have not progressed much, themselves, but there is some pretty advanced technology on the planet that controls them – weaponry that kills and it's not like any other Goa'uld technology that we've run across. There's actual electronic controls, hundreds of them, all over the planet. The natives believe we must somehow be responsible since we have our own technology and they won't release our people unless we disarm the weapons. We free their people, they free the hostages."

Edwards jumped in. "We've been trying to figure them out, hack into the programming, if you will, but we're stumped. Of course, we're not hackers, so it's slow going. But this weaponry..."

When he paused, Major Carter picked it back up. Most Gao'uld weaponry reacts to the naquadah in the blood of the Gao'uld or a Jaffa."

"Naquadah? Jaffa?"

She smiled, usually this was a six week course for new recruits. "Naquadah is a heavy mineral. It's what the Stargate is made of. It can also be made into an explosive or other weapons. It's naturally occurring outside of our solar system and the Gao'uld have traces of it in their blood. Jaffa are honored slaves that carry an immature Gao'uld inside their bodies."

Gibbs couldn't quite hide the discomfort on his face. "That's a honor, all right."

McGee might have agreed with Gibbs on that, but he had his own questions, his fingers flying as he talked. "You said that the Gao'uld weapons react to their blood? What happens when a normal human tries to use them?"

"A weapon that was designed strictly for Gao'uld use is nothing but a chunk of metal for the average human." Carter glanced up at O'Neill for a moment. "That being said, both Jack and I have had symbiotes share our bodies. That means that we both have traces of naquadah in our blood."

"Does anyone at the NID have naquadah in their blood?"

"No."

"Can it be introduced to the blood in any other way?"

"I don't believe so, but we've never studied that to be honest. Why?"

They were investigators and Gibbs already knew where McGee was going with his line of questioning.

"The NID might have been trying to get their hands on the Gao'uld weapons, but until they figure out a way to get the naquadah into their blood, these new weapons are the next best thing."

Carter was already thinking of possible ways to give naquadah exposure. "Damn it, I should have thought of that."

"We're criminal investigators, we look at things a little differently. What are these weapons capable of?"

While McGee continued to work on the computer end of the problem with Carter and Edwards, Gibbs and O'Neill reviewed the range and firepower of the weapons situated on P3X-518.

-NCIS-

Five hours after they'd started, Gibbs and O'Neill had exhausted every possible option to physically shut down the weapons. There were too many of them surrounding the village to be taken out all at once, and destroying one would trigger an attack mode in the rest. The villagers had tried fleeing in the past, but the weapons were airborne and mobile, capable of tracking great distances.

Gibbs looked up and saw Tim lean back in his chair, his fingers interlaced as he stretched him, and a pleased look on his face. "Progress?"

Carter was grinning. "You might say that."

"You got them booted out of our system? For good?" O'Neill moved to stand behind McGee, trying to make sense of what showed on the computer monitor.

"Better."

"Way better, Sir." By now Carter was almost bouncing on her toes.

While Carter and McGee looked pleased, Edwards was in awe. "That is so amazing. I would have never thought of that." He looked up at O'Neill. "Can I keep him?"

"He's just on loan for now, Edwards. Anything past that, you'll have to talk to the big guy. So just what did he do?"

"Actually, General Hammond should sit in on this, too, Jack."

At Carter's request, O'Neill quickly made the call and a few minutes later, George Hammond joined the group. "I hear you've made some progress already, son. That's good to hear."

"Thank you, General. I've definitely confirmed that it's the NID hacking into your files."

"Can you block them?"

Tim turned to look directly at Hammond. "I can, but the moment they're blocked, they'll know and start looking for another way to get what they're looking for."

The General knew he was right, even if it didn't make him happy. "All right, what do you suggest?" Before Tim could open his mouth, George held his hand up. "In English so the rest of us can understand."

O'Neill had just been about to ask for little words, so he pointed at the General and grinned, an old joke between them. "Yeah, that."

McGee glanced over at Gibbs, remembering similar requests, usually accompanied with headslaps. Gibbs' eyes also held traces of amusement as Tim started to explain.

"Okay, I've basically created a virtual world version of your mainframe and shunted them over to it. The files are still there and intact enough that they won't notice a difference, but the details in the virtual files are being changed. Using a randomizer, things like chemical compounds being discovered are being changed just enough that any attempt on their part to recreate anything will fail."

"Sneaky and devious, I like this kid." Jack was nodding as he thought about it. "Can they get from the virtual mainframe to the real one?"

"No. If they ever discover the switch, they'll have to start from scratch breaking into your system and we've added extra protocols and failsafes to make it much harder for them and much easier for you to detect the attempt."

"I really like this kid." Jack rubbed his hands together. "So, in other words, you've got the NID chasing their tail. What happens when they see that new missions aren't being added to their version of our computer files."

"They are being added – randomized versions, that is." McGee turned serious. "Honestly, I don't know how long they'll be fooled, but the longer it takes, the more evidence against them you'll have."

"Excellent." Hammond looked beyond pleased. "Under any other circumstances, we wouldn't be in quite this much of a rush, but do you have any ideas about our problem on P3X-518? I assume you saw what we have so far."

"I've been studying it while the virtual mainframe built. I'm no expert yet, but I think I've got the gist of it." McGee would have liked more time to study the strange symbols and code, but time was running out. "Do we have video of the actual devices, to see the interface?"

O'Neill and Carter looked to the General. Abstract computer files were one thing. Showing video of an off-world expedition to civilians was an entirely different matter. Tim sensed the problem. "Even just a still image of the device would help. If I'm going to teach Major Carter how to shut it down, I need to see what she's up against."

Hammond turned to O'Neill. "Set them up in the briefing room with both the video recovered from SG-5 and from the reconnaissance mission your team did."

"Sir?"

"We're asking the darn near impossible, the least we can do is to give him every bit of knowledge on the situation we have."

"Yes. Sir."


	8. Chapter 8

Back in the briefing room next to Hammond's office, Jack loaded up the required footage. It was black and white and grainy, the image bouncing around and becoming overwhelmed by the bright sunlight on the planet surface.

"Is this the best there is?" Tim was leaning close, his nose almost touching the screen as he squinted to see the small drones as they flitted in and out of the shot.

"I'm afraid so." Carter sat at one of the computers, trying to filter out some of the interference. "There is an unusually strong electromagnetic wave pattern that is somehow occurring on the planet, possibly natural in origin. Only our most shielded recording equipment was able to get anything at all."

While Carter and McGee were working on the playback, Gibbs glanced over at Jack, who shook his head. "I knew the recordings weren't great, but I didn't know they were this bad. Might explain why the NID is interested in the weaponry here more than anything else we've found on other planets."

"Yeah." The electronics of Earthly technology, unless they were heavily shielded, were instantly destroyed by a strong electromagnetic pulse. Determining how the weapons on P3X-518 managed to operate under those conditions would be a tactical advantage. "Could explain a lot."

They'd finally come to a shot of what was believed to be the central control for the weapons and Tim leaned even closer to the screen, repeating the playback several times before he stopped.

"What were you able to determine, Agent McGee?"

"Several things, Sir." Tim glanced around at the group before continuing to answer the General's question. "First off, since it reacted when your people touched it, it appears to not be the type of weaponry that is limited to only Gao'uld use. If it had, we'd have been dead in the water right then.

"From what I could tell, it's most likely using a numerically based programming language, judging from the limits of the small touch pad. That's good because it means we can treat this more like an encryption that needs to be broken rather than something written in an alien language that we have to translate."

Jack glanced at Sam, making his judgment partially based on her expression. "So, that's in our favor. Score one for the good guys, but can you tell Carter how to break it?"

"This is where we hit a snag." McGee had an almost apologetic expression when he briefly looked at Gibbs before shifting his attention to Major Carter. "I noticed a lot of jerkiness in the video. How much lag time will there be between the live recording and when I'd be actually seeing it?"

She quickly thought through the few options they had. "The site is far enough away from the Stargate that we'd have to set up a relay. With the strong EM waves, the signal will have to be boosted at least once, maybe twice, before it goes through the Gate. Plus, it means either keeping the Gate open continuously, or setting up a schedule to send the information back and forth. Even if we leave the Gate open, we're looking at a ten to twelve second delay for the video feed coming through to Earth, another four or five seconds for the audio coming back. I'll warn you, the images you'll be getting won't be any better than what we're looking at here – might even be worse since you'll be seeing them raw."

"Then, we have a big problem. Take a look." Tim tapped the keyboard a few times, bringing up the one close-up they had of the strange device. They watched as a human hand touched the screen, bringing it to life, but as the apparently wrong symbols were touched, or there was a pause of more than a few seconds, it went dark. "It looks like a built-in security system. Make a mistake or take too long and you have to start over. It's possible that if you make too many mistakes, it shuts you out totally."

"Or blows up."

Colonel O'Neill had a point, but that didn't deter McGee. "I can't hack into it from here, General Hammond. If I make the attempt, it has to be on the planet."

"Son, I can't ask a civilian to do this."

"I know, that's why I'm volunteering." Tim ran his fingers through his hair, then shoved his hands into his lap to hide their trembling. "Look, I could give Major Carter a crash course in breaking encryptions and hacking into secure systems, but it would take days, maybe weeks. We've got hours and I don't see another option. Honestly, after seeing this, If I had it in my hands right now, I'm not sure I'd have enough time to crack it."

Jack could see where this was going, but as team leader of SG1 and second in command of the Stargate installation, he had to put his objection on record. "You're not trained at all for Gate travel. Hell, kid, you're not even trained as a soldier."

"No, but I am." Gibbs leaned forward, resting his arms on the edge of the table. "I'm a Marine and I've been watching McGee's six for years and that's not going to change now."

"Great, two civilians." Evan as he complained, O'Neill was climbing to his feet to make the arrangements. "I hope neither of you get seasick, cause it's a wild ride through the Gate."

"Oh, joy."

-NCIS-

Gibbs let out a low whistle as he followed O'Neill into the Armory. "Wow. Nice toys."

"Yep." O'Neill led him through the aisles, picking up weapons as he went. "This is our standard issue P90. Selective fire, your choice of full auto or semi, with ambidextrous controls. Holds fifty round magazines, will spit out nine hundred rounds a minute. You'll carry one of these plus a standard handgun."

"Nice." Gibbs hefted the rifle. It was different from anything he'd fired in the Corps, but the compact design was comfortable to hold and the top loading magazine was quick to swap out. He used the strap to swing it onto his shoulder as Jack handed him a SIG Sauer. "That looks familiar."

"A lot of our guys carry either that or the Beretta as a sidearm. Figured you'd like at least one familiar thing on this trip."

"Yeah." Gibbs did a quick check on the gun before sliding it into the holster strapped to his side. "What's the range on the P90?"

"Two hundred meters. If we fight, it's in self defense so we don't need the extra range." O'Neill had read Gibbs' file and knew his background as a sniper. "One of the weapons that we carry on the equipment transport is a sniper rifle. If we need it, we've got bigger trouble than the natives, so let's hope we don't need it."

O'Neill's next stop was a rack of obviously alien weapons, picking up a strange device that looked like a coiled serpent.

"What is that?"

"This is a zat gun."

"A zat gun?"

O'Neill shrugged, glad that Daniel wasn't there to tease him as he stumbled over the full name. "The Gao'uld call it a zat'ni'katel."

Gibbs wasn't even going to try to repeat that as Jack slipped it into the odd shaped holster strapped to his leg. "Zat gun works. What's it take to shoot one?"

"Aim and then press the button. Once stuns, twice is a kill shot, third shot disintegrates."

"I want one."

"Gibbs..."

"McGee's going to be so loaded down with tech gear, he'll only have a handgun. I want one of those."

"Fine, but you have to qualify on it first."

-NCIS-

"Okay, I think you're set." Carter looked over the array of equipment laid out on the bed. Gibbs and McGee had been moved to housing on the lower level. Now, instead of armed guards, there was just one Airman stationed outside to act as a guide until they learned their way around a little more.

McGee looked up from the alien tablet he was using and nodded. "I think so. Now that we've got all this linked together, it should make the coding a lot easier to crack."

"Assuming that the Tok'ra data pad is able to translate the device on the planet. None of us recognized the writings."

"Yeah. Assuming that." Tim gave her a crooked grin and took a deep breath as he looked over the various pieces of technology that he would be using. "What's it like, going through the Stargate?"

Sam remembered back to her first time through the Gate. She'd barely been able to stand at first and had darn near puked. It was only the determination to not show any weakness in front of the men that had kept her from anointing the Gate on Abydos with the commissary's finest. "Imagine pulling over 8G's in an F-16 in sub-freezing conditions."

When his eyes widened, she laughed and patted his arm. "You might not want to eat before we leave." Carter laughed again and turned for the door. "You'll be fine, Tim. I'll see you in Gate Room."

Alone, Tim raked his fingers through his hair as he started to pace. "Oh, my God, what have we gotten ourselves into? We're walking into a wormhole. We're going to have our atoms scattered across the galaxy. We're going..." He grinned as the excitement over-rode the fear. "We're going to another planet. We're using alien technology to travel to another planet. Oh, my God, this is so cool."

"You done geeking out?"

Tim spun around to find Gibbs leaning against the doorway. There was no scorn or ridicule in his voice or on his face, only amusement and a level of excitement Tim had never seen before. Gibbs pushed away from the wall and stalked closer, pulling Tim against him, their foreheads touching. "Talk about cool, I just certified on a zat gun."

"Really? A zat'ni'katel? Carter told me about them."

"Show-off." Gibbs grinned even wider, then turned serious. "We've only got a few minutes before we have to go, but I want you to know – what you said earlier – I feel the same way, too." Gibbs paused and looked at the hopeful face, brushing his hand down Tim's cheek. "You're my everything, too. Have been for a long time and I'm not going to hide it any longer."

"Jethro."

Gibbs groaned at the breathy whisper of his name, feeling it in the most intimate places of his body, and brushed his lips across Tim's. "When we get back..."

Tim nipped at his lip before pulling back as their escort knocked on the door. "I'm going to hold you to that promise, Jethro."


	9. Chapter 9

a/n - Okay, two things -

1) I've moved this off of the crossover section because apparently readers over there can't comprehend what the word slash actually means. Since it's names I don't recognize from this fandom, I'm going to assume that they're SG1 fans. Yeah, pre-slash means they're working towards becoming a couple.

2) Don't threaten me. I'm serious about this, folks, and that threat didn't come from a SG1 fan. My parents are in their 80's and in failing health. They're also very homophobic and my mother is mentally ill. That's why I have two separate profiles. They read my gen stories, they read the reviews almost every day. Therefore, going onto one of my gen stories to complain about my writing slash instead of gen is not okay in any way shape or form. It's not a friendly nudge to get me working more on those stories. Luckily, this was from a reviewer that wasn't signed in (even though she put her name on it), so I was able to quickly remove it. I'm not going to play this game, people. I'll pull every damn story I've got on both profiles if it continues.

All that being said, here's the next chapter. If you can remember that I'm a real person, living a real life, then I hope you enjoy it. If you think that my only function in this world is to churn out stories to your personal order, then this is probably a good time to stop for everyone's sake. I hope you stick around.

* * *

"Wow." At ground level, the Stargate was even bigger and more impressive looking. Tim looked at it from this new angle while a six-wheeled transport rolled up to the base of the ramp.

Behind Tim, Gibbs was equally impressed. "We're really going to just walk through that thing and end up on another planet?" Despite the danger and seriousness of the mission, even Gibbs couldn't ignore the excitement he was feeling.

O'Neill and Carter walked up with the rest of their team. Wanting to see the reactions, O'Neill made the introductions. "You've met Dr. Jackson, of course, but I'd like you to meet Teal'c. He's a Jaffa, former First Prime of Apophis, and now he's on our side."

Speechless, the two agents stared at their first alien. Slightly taller and broader than most humans, the dark skinned man would have looked right at home on a football field if it hadn't been for the raised, golden tattoo on his forehead. Teal'c stepped forward and bowed his head slightly in greeting, his voice rich and melodious. "Welcome, your assistance is an honor." After a second nod, he turned away to check with the added security going through the Gate with them.

Tim looked thoughtful and then slightly amused. Curious, Gibbs stepped close behind him. "What?"

Tilting his head to whisper softly in Gibbs' ear, Tim's smile grew. "If Ziva were here, we'd have to pry her off of him."

Gibbs smiled and tilted his chin towards Carter, who was moving to join Teal'c. "I think she'd have a fight on her hands."

O'Neill approached them with another man. Realizing now that not all of the staff here were from Earth, they watched closely, but Gibbs recognized a fellow Jarhead, even without looking at the insignia on the uniform. "Gibbs, McGee, this is Lieutenant Anderson. He and his squad will be backing us up on this mission."

Gibbs shook the offered hand. "Didn't realize you had a Marine detachment here."

Anderson grinned. "You ever see Flyboys fight? It ain't a pretty thing."

It was obviously an old joke between the two men and O'Neill just shook his head. "We've got some Marine, some Army. Pretty much everybody is represented here but Coast Guard."

The joking ceased when General Hammond arrived, supervising the delivery of the last of the equipment. "Gentlemen, these are your GDO devices. Everyone off-world carries one, in case you get separated from the rest of your team. It will transmit your personal code to open the iris back here on Earth. If the iris is not opened before you step through the wormhole, you will die when you reach this end. We've pre-programmed them with your NCIS employee ID numbers to make it simpler. Key it in, activate the device and we'll know you're coming."

Hammond had been around scientists long enough to know the question was coming even before McGee opened his mouth. "What does GDO stand for?"

"Garage Door Opener, Colonel O'Neill named them." Hammond let his humor show through before turning serious again. "Good luck, agents. We will be waiting."

The teams lined up at the base of the ramp. The Field Remote Expeditionary Device, or FRED, would be the first thing through the Gate, loaded with the gear that could not be carried, plus extra weapons and ammo. It would be followed by the Marines tasked with protecting the civilians. Once the Marine squad was convinced the site was secure, Gibbs and McGee would step through the Gate, with SG1 right on their heels.

From the control room, a voice came over the loudspeaker, calling off the count down. "Chevron one, engaged. Chevron two, engaged." As the voice droned on, the inner ring of the Gate spun back and forth, lining up the necessary points. Finally the last call came. "Chevron seven, locked."

As the lock was called, an energy vortex began to form inside the ring, bubbling out, before pulling back and stabilizing. The FRED unit rolled through, disappearing instantly as it went through the event horizon, and the four men of the Marine squad calmly walked through behind it.

Exchanging a look, Gibbs and McGee walked up the ramp to stop in front of the Gate. Both men stared at the event horizon as the blue and silver waves of energy rippled like water. While McGee leaned close and stared, Gibbs reached out and poked it with a finger.

"Told you it would be Gibbs." Grinning, Daniel elbowed Jack and held his hand out. Jack grumbled and pulled out a twenty dollar bill, which Daniel gleefully took. Jack started to step forward, but another hand held out stopped him.

Now looking over their shoulders, Gibbs and McGee watched at O'Neill paid out another twenty to Major Carter. She grinned and explained as SG1 joined them at the Gate. "Daniel and I were both convinced that Agent McGee would study the Gate and you'd take the more hands-on approach, Agent Gibbs."

Teal'c looked amused as he gave his own reasons for not participating in the betting. "I have no need for any more of Colonel O'Neill's money."

"Yeah, yeah. Come on, we're burning daylight." Jack stepped up behind Gibbs and McGee and pushed them through the Gate.

-NCIS-

A hand on his back, then instant cold were all that Tim was aware of as he stumbled out of the Stargate on P3X-518. Even with the dose of Dramamine he'd received from the base doctor, he was feeling like he'd just spent days on a boat at sea. Taking a deep breath, he looked over at Gibbs. The older man definitely looked green from their trip through the Gate, but he was staring at the SIG strapped to his waist, coated with frost.

"Damn."

McGee immediately looked down at his own sidearm, seeing the same thing. "Wow."

One of the Marines tugged them away from the Gate. "That's one of the reasons we carry the P90, sirs. The polymer stock doesn't ice up or warp like a lot of standard weapons. Sit down for a minute, sirs. The first time through the Gate is rough on all of us."

Tim didn't have to be told twice and immediately sat on the steps, off to the side, just in time to see SG1 come through. He was pleased to note that their entry wasn't perfectly smooth either.

Gibbs, on the other hand, was staring up at the sky as he sat next to McGee. Following his gaze, Tim looked up also, and saw what a strange world they were in. Two suns lit up the sky, giving everything a double shadow effect. The heat reminded them of the Middle East, but there were still patches of trees and bushes in the distance. Probably the most striking difference, though, was the eerie green sky.

SG1 came down the steps from the Stargate and Gibbs stood to join them, tugging Tim up as he did. They walked for almost an hour before they began to see signs of civilization – blast craters and burned out tree stumps. Eventually they came onto several burned out buildings.

"All of this was done by the drone weapons? Why?" When McGee didn't elaborate further, Gibbs did.

"Do the Gao'uld treat all the planets under their control this way?"

Teal'c shook his head as he bent down to examine a few bones, partially covered with dirt. "This does not fit the Gao'uld. If there was something here they felt was valuable, they would have a legion of Jaffa here to protect it. Otherwise, they leave the planet alone until they need to harvest potential hosts. The technology is similar to that of the Gao'uld system lords, but I have never seen weapons such as the ones found here."

Yelling and shouting could be heard in the distance and they picked up the pace, bursting out of a patch of destroyed trees to find themselves at the edge of the remains of a village. On a raised platform in the center, a young girl was tied to a pole and was being whipped by one of the elders. Gibbs' P90 was raised before he even realized it, but Carter grabbed the barrel and pushed it back down.

"We can't interfere yet."

"You're going to just stand here and watch him beat that child?"

"No, but wait." She tilted her head toward Dr. Jackson as he moved forward, speaking in a strange language. Jack was right behind him, Teal'c to Jack's left. As Daniel negotiated, Carter continued to explain. "These people have lived in terror of those weapons for generations, their world has been utterly destroyed by them. They've become a rigid society for fear of any mistake bringing down the wrath of the demons they believe control those weapons."

"So a child's mistake is punished by a public whipping?" Gibbs quit talking, but Tim could see the tension on his face.

"It's the only way they know to survive." Samantha pointed out the faint outline of the foundation that once supported a large building. "A hundred years ago, this was a thriving civilization. Now, they're living in caves, on the verge of starvation. Stopping these drone attacks will not only save our people, it will save what's left of this entire culture."

Daniel jogged over to bring them up to speed. "I've told them again that the weapons aren't ours, but that we've brought someone who might be able to stop them. They're going to wait in the caves where it's safer."

"And the hostages?"

"They'll let Jack and Teal'c see our people, Lieutenant Anderson. We'll be allowed to give them food, also."

"And medical care?"

Daniel glanced over at McGee. "Let's just get these weapons shut down, okay?"

Understanding that they weren't out of the woods by a long shot, McGee and Carter got right to work. Their first step was to tie their own equipment into the alien technology. Everyone else was ordered to stay back, in case there was a hidden auto-destruct failsafe program wired in.

Gibbs watched nervously as the casing was slowly pried loose on what they hoped was the master control. It was almost a meter tall with a glowing panel on the top.

Wearing the bulk of an ordinance protective suit, Tim looked both brave and terrified as he lifted the back panel free while Carter rerouted the wires that attached it to a small naquadah explosive. A few moments later everyone smiled when they announced that they were in.

Anderson quickly got them back on track as he brought his weapon up. "Eyes open everyone. That probably got their attention." Sure enough, less than five minutes later a low flying drone appeared on the horizon headed straight for them. "Incoming bogey, three o'clock!'

Gibbs took his position between McGee and the fast approaching craft, vaguely aware of the others scrambling to take up their own positions. The weapon opened fire, laying down a line of laser fire that had them all ducking. Gibbs braced himself on the side of the console and returned fire.

Jack and Teal'c came running from the other direction, trying to draw its fire. Teal'c had a large energy weapon that looked like a long walking stick, while O'Neill carried a P90. When the drone turned to fire at them, Gibbs was able to take a better look at it. Small, the size of a briefcase, it had no wings or obvious source of propulsion. The only protrusion on the rounded form was the small firing port on the bottom that swiveled as necessary. Hoping that was a weakness, Gibbs aimed and fired off a burst of rounds. The drone immediately turned back toward him, but it was definitely damaged.

"Could use some help over here." Gibbs yelled over his shoulder, then saw more drones coming from another direction.

Anderson was already lining up on the new arrivals. "We'll try to keep them off your back."

Gibbs risked a quick glance down at McGee and Carter. He didn't know exactly what she was doing inside the control center, but he'd never seen Tim's fingers moving that fast as he reacted to the commands she was reading off.

The first drone was circling around to make another strafing run and Gibbs loaded another magazine as he watched it come straight at him. It was firing non-stop and he waited until the laser was hitting the ground only a few feet in front of him before letting loose with the P90, emptying the entire clip in a matter of seconds. At that distance every bullet hit its target and the drone began to corkscrew down, hitting the ground and coming to rest less than a foot from the base of the control panel. Gibbs didn't have time to even think about what he'd done as the sky was now filled with more of the drones than he could count.


	10. Chapter 10

Staying low in the underbrush, Daniel split his attention between a little boy near the edge of the cave and the drones flying overhead. He'd seen that look of fear before and knew the kid would likely bolt before long. Firing at one of the drones, Daniel started to edge closer to the child. Teal'c saw what he was doing and turned to fire at the same drone, helping to bring it down quicker and to provide cover fire for when Daniel moved. It was only a few moments later when the frightened child panicked and bolted from his secure spot. Teal'c stood, providing himself as a target. Daniel ran for the child, scooping him up and continuing to run for the cave, the blasts from the drone coming dangerously close to his feet as he made it to safety.

Sobbing in relief, the mother of the boy gratefully took him back to where her baby was sleeping and Daniel returned to the entrance of the cave. Before he could rejoin the others, the High Priest of the village, Ka-hel, waved him over. Taking one last look at Jack and the others, Daniel joined him.

"Thank you for saving my grandson. The demon's weapons killed my son at the beginning of the harvest."

Grateful, as always, that the local language hadn't veered off from its base language that Daniel knew, he bowed. "It is an honor to save one that is so young and has so much potential. He will follow in your footsteps?"

"If the demon allows our people to survive that long, yes." The elderly man stared at Daniel and the team's archeologist and linguist expected him to ask if the battle outside could be won. Instead, he waved Daniel further into the cave. "Come, my son, you have earned the right to enter the Holy Cavern."

Daniel looked over his shoulder as he followed the other man. He was worried about the team, but if he could learn something about the history of these people and the supposed demon that controlled them, that knowledge could tip the fight in their favor.

-NCIS-

For every one drone that the team brought down, three more seemed to appear. The ground around the team was littered with the smoking remains of the various airborne weapons shot down by the humans most recently from Earth.

Changing the magazine of his weapon once again, Gibbs looked over at McGee. In all the years they'd worked together, he'd never seen the other man's fingers flying so fast across a keyboard. Two drones were targeting their group and Gibbs picked one and started firing. On the other side of the master control, Jack looked over his shoulder at McGee and Carter. "Hurry up, you two."

Firing at the one drone, Gibbs didn't notice immediately when another one broke off and changed direction towards him. One of the Marines opened fire on it, but it managed to clip Gibbs with a last shot as it became unstable. Gibbs was spun around by the impact and fell to the ground, leaving McGee and Carter wide open on that side.

"We've got incoming." Carter lifted her sidearm and started firing, one-handed, as did McGee while he continued to type commands into the tablet.

The multiple hits from their combined weapons brought the drone down before Jack could adjust his aim to the new threat. He watched it hit the ground and then turned to look at the two scientists, shooting arms still extended as they continued to work. Jack couldn't help but grin as he helped Gibbs back up onto his feet. "Yeah, okay, that worked."

Tim allowed himself a quick glance at the man he loved. "You all right?"

"Yeah, I'll live." Gibbs opted not to look too closely at the burned streak on his upper arm, instead looking at Jack. "How many more of these things are there?"

"Hell if I know."

-NCIS-

Daniel bent down to walk through the low entryway that led to the Holy Cavern. Once there, he straightened up and gasped. Large chunks of a naturally glowing stone lit up the cavern with large paintings filling the wall space in between. Looking closer he could tell he was looking at the entire history of the native people, dating back to before the arrival of the 'demon' and his flying weapons. Pulling out his notebook and a pencil, Daniel went straight to the oldest looking of the murals and started to translate what he could.

Nodding in approval, the High Priest began to speak. "Our people once lived in a great city covered in shining jewels. The demon came and demanded his share of our wealth. The leaders refused and to punish us for our selfishness, we were cast out of our homes and left to live in this valley."

"Has the demon ever returned since that day?"

"Not directly, but he watches us from his machines, which is why we must be ever vigilant. The King does not understand the dangers he has put upon us for demanding that you cut off the demon's eye."

Daniel was beginning to feel that he was getting to the heart of the matter. "Does the demon have a name?"

The High Priest bowed his head. "It was forbidden to say his name out loud. That knowledge has been lost to the passage of time."

So close, so close. "What about a picture, is there an image? Do one of these murals show him casting the people out?"

Wearing the long robes of his station, the priest slowly walked across the large cavern as Daniel followed behind, willing him to move faster. Just as he was about to start screaming at him to run, they stopped in front of a small image, tucked away in the corner.

Holding his breath, Daniel studied the painting. It depicted what appeared to be a human, possibly a little taller than the humans currently living on Earth. There was nothing to show the symbolism of a System Lord, no army of Jaffa behind him. Only his slight height advantage and a glow emanating from his raised hand showed him to be anything beyond a normal man.

Daniel stepped closer, his nose almost touching the painted wall, looking for the tell-tale signs of a ribbon device wrapped around the man's hand and wrist. Instead, it was a device worn like a ring and Daniel knew exactly what they were up against.

-NCIS-

Outside, the battle continued, but Gibbs thought the number of drones was finally starting to drop, so maybe they were finally gaining the upper hand. In his head he heard DiNozzo yelling not to jinx it and, sure enough, a new sound could be heard coming closer. Jack heard it, too, and moved to stand next to Gibbs as they watched for what was coming over the hill.

"Crap." Jack's eyes widened as the sight of the new wave of drones, significantly larger than what they'd been fighting. He yelled over his shoulder at McGee and Carter. "Now would be a good time."

Tim didn't look up as his fingers continued to fly. "Working on it."

Jack watched as much larger firing ports rolled open across the bottom of these new threats. "Work faster, please."

The 'please' got Carter's attention and she finally looked up. "Oh, shit." Taking a deep breath, she turned back to McGee. "Do it."

He was shaking his head even as he prepared what he hoped was the final sequence. "We haven't tested it yet. If I'm wrong..."

A third type of drone came over the ridge, the weapon ports on this one were the size of the entirety of the first drones. Seeing this, McGee keyed in the final command.

The entire column started to softly glow while the touch pad lit up bright enough that it hurt their eyes to look at it. As the brightness increased, a beeping tone began to emanate from the device, becoming faster and higher pitched with every cycle. One by one, the active drones began making the same sound, until it could be heard throughout the entire valley.

Gun raised, Jack didn't know which one to shoot first. "Are they supposed to do that?"

Gibbs spared a quick glance back at McGee. "Tim?"

Before Tim could tell them anything, the column and touch pad went dark and it was suddenly silent, the drones dropping to the ground, powerless. O'Neill grinned as he walked over and poked at one. "I'll take that as a yes."

A short cheer went up and then they immediately got to work, making sure everyone was accounted for and treating the injured.

-NCIS-

The caves were in chaos as the fight outside suddenly ended. Daniel tried to understand all that was being said around him as he was pushed out into the open and large rocks were rolled into place, sealing the caves shut behind him. He looked around at the various sized drones littering the ground as he made his way to the center of the battle.

Jack looked up and smiled at him. "Hey, what's happening? Is it over?"

"Hopefully." Daniel pulled Jack into a brief hug before returning to business. "If the demon doesn't return tomorrow, they will return the hostages."

"Oooookaaay." Jack had expected a little more enthused reaction from the locals. "So, what's the problem? We did what they wanted."

"Apparently, the High Priest has always been opposed to the taking of the hostages and the demand that we destroy the weapons. He's convinced that we've called the wrath of the demon down onto the valley. The compromise was that if the demon doesn't arrive tomorrow..."

"They'll release the hostages then. Yeah, I got it. Should we be worried?"

Daniel hesitated before he spoke, which was always a bad sign. "I believe their demon is actually an Ashrak. Possibly a rogue one."

"Well, crap."


	11. Chapter 11

Tim sat next to Gibbs, watching as Carter bandaged his injured arm. She finished with a smile and moved on. Luckily, the injury count had been light and minor this time, but it was enough to keep her and the Marine medic busy for a little bit. Once they were alone, Tim scooted closer to Gibbs.

Hesitant fingers hovered over the bright white bandage. "Does it hurt?"

"Nah, I've hurt myself worse shaving." When Tim didn't look convinced, Gibbs wrapped his other arm around him and pulled him a little closer. "I'm fine, you're the one I'm worried about."

"Me? Why are you worried about me?" He didn't notice the amused glint in the bright blue eyes.

Gibbs let his hand slide up to squeeze the base of McGee's neck. "Because you're the one that's going to have to come up with what to tell DiNozzo."

Tim's head snapped around, his eyes narrowing at the smirk on Gibbs' face. "Very funny."

The smirk grew wider. "I have my moments."

Somehow, being with this group seemed to loosen up something inside Gibbs, but before Tim could press further, Jack walked up to them and dropped two MRE's on their laps. "Here you go, ladies. Kicking Gao'uld ass always gives me an appetite."

McGee frowned. "Carter was sure those weren't Gao'uld weapons."

O'Neill's head bounced around as he debated the best way to explain. "Sometimes the System Lords don't like to get their hands dirty, like when they're trying to murder other System Lords or anyone that opposes them. There's some mercenaries, assassins, that they call in on jobs like that – the Ashrak. Daniel found some evidence that the demon these people are all afraid of is actually an Ashrak. Not only that, Daniel's convinced that this Ashrak is rogue, which means that he doesn't answer to anyone, just aligns himself with the highest bidder."

"But why here, and why" Tim waved his hands around at all the destruction, "all this?"

Sitting on the steps next to Gibbs, Jack explained his theory. "As I see it, there's only two reasons why an Ashrak would go through all this trouble. One, that he's got his personal base of operations here on the planet somewhere and doesn't want the people stumbling across it."

It seemed like a rather expensive and elaborate 'do not disturb' sign and Gibbs' gut was telling him to go with option two. "Or?"

"According to the history that the High Priest showed Daniel, the people were cast out of their jewel-encrusted city because they were selfish and didn't want to share the pretty baubles."

"So he drove them out and helped himself?"

"Which fits the rogue theory because if there's that kind of riches here, a System Lord would have been here with an army of Jaffa to strip the planet down to its crust."

Tim started to get to his feet. "I need to figure out if that thing sent out a signal." Jack waved him back down.

"Eat and get some rest, that's an order. If it did, it's too late to do anything about it now. When both suns go down it gets dark here and I'd rather have you fresh in the morning, just in case."

It had been a very long day and McGee nodded before stepping away, following the path to the latrine area that had been set up. Jack watched him leave. "He did good, today. I don't have a clue exactly what he did, but he did it well."

"When it comes to the computer stuff, I never know exactly how he does it, but he always makes it look easy. What happens now?"

"Well," Jack shifted and stretched out his legs. "We will get the hostages back in the morning unless the Ashrak shows up first. You two and the hostages will go back through the Gate with some of the team and the rest of us will continue the negotiations here and set up a watch in case they have trouble later."

Gibbs nodded, looking thoughtful, and O'Neill suspected that Gibbs had more questions, so he smiled at Daniel as he waited.

"You and Daniel?"

"We don't advertise, but we don't hide, either. You and McGee?"

"Finally admitted it to ourselves before we came through the Gate." Gibbs looked around, watching as Daniel and Teal'c tended a fire, quietly talking to some of the others. "Doesn't seem to be an issue."

The first sun was setting, giving an odd combination of glow and long shadows. Jack looked around at the men and women he'd fought beside many times since that first trip through the Stargate. "When the bad guy out there can pretty much melt your brains out of your ears, it gives you a different perspective, changes what's really important in life."

Gibbs didn't say anything, but he was listening intently to everything Jack said. Jack nodded his understanding and reached up to point out the first stars visible in the darkening sky. "Even the guys that might have been phobic when they arrived at the Mountain – the first time overnight on a different planet, it changes you. Looking up at the stars and realizing that there's not one constellation out there that you recognize because you're so far away from Earth makes a lot of problems back on Earth seem pretty petty in comparison."

"Makes sense." Gibbs smiled as he watched Tim's slow return, as almost everyone stopped him to shake his hand or pat his back.

"What happens, how will it be for you and McGee when you go back to Washington DC?"

Gibbs didn't have an answer, but the flash of worry that crossed his face spoke volumes. O'Neill tapped his leg as he stood. "You've both earned a spot here with us if you want it. Things get bad there, you've got options."

"Appreciate it." The relief replaced the worry as Gibbs got up and met Tim, who was returning with a cup of coffee from one of the Marines.

Tim didn't say a word, just smiled and handed the cup over, but he did smirk at the look of pleasure on Gibbs' face. Shoulders touching, they passed the cup back and forth until it was empty. Gibbs then handed the cup off to one of the other Marines who was headed for the campfire. Gibbs licked his lips. "There's nothing better than that first cup of coffee after a successful battle. Jack will show you where to set up our bedrolls, okay?"

"Sure. Are we on early or late watch?"

"Neither." It was Anderson who answered as he walked by. "Newbies always get the first night off of patrol, especially civilian newbies. Enjoy the night sky, it'll be magnificent."

Even with one sun still on the horizon, there were more stars visible than any night in DC so neither man argued. Gibbs followed the path to the latrine area and McGee went up to find Jack.

-NCIS-

Gibbs felt bad about not taking a watch, but he knew that Anderson was right, he was constantly distracted by the night sky and the sounds of strange animals in the brush. He watched as one of the Marines took photos with a night camera of a three toed animal that was the size of a house cat. With large, luminous eyes and silky fur, it rubbed against Gibbs' leg as it was photographed, then scurried back to its nest at the base of a burned out tree stump. Soft mewling sounds from deep under the stump suggest that there were babies down there waiting to be fed.

"What was that?"

"I don't know, Sir, but she was sure cute. There's a team of scientists back at the Mountain that are studying the animal life we find, so I always try to get a few pictures for them if I can."

Still smiling at the little creature, Gibbs found McGee and their beds set up near the deactivated master control. The two bedrolls were set up a few feet apart, like Gibbs would expect if they were hiding the new changes in their relationship. However, Gibbs had taken Jack's words to heart and moved his bed closer to McGee before laying down.

If Tim was suspicious when Gibbs moved the beds closer, all doubt was eliminated when Gibbs snuggled up behind him and draped his arm over Tim. "We're not hiding."

"But what happens when we go home?"

Gibbs smiled against the back of Tim's neck. Like I said, we're not hiding and I'm not giving you up."

"They'll separate us."

"Did you notice that when the fighting started, Teal'c was the one watching Daniel's six and Jack was with Carter?"

"Yeah, I did." Tim turned slightly in Gibbs' arms, so he could see the other man better. "Will that be enough in our world?"

"I think so, but it might slow down your chances for advancement."

Tim snorted and slapped gently at Gibbs' hand. "After what we've seen, my ranking at NCIS is pretty insignificant when you look at the big picture. All I care about right now is not getting separated from you. The rest honestly doesn't matter, not anymore."

"Yeah." Gibbs ran his fingertips across Tim's arm. "If we have problems, we've got a place at Stargate Command if we want it."

"Really?" Tim raised up enough to look down into Gibbs' face. "You'd give up everything in DC? Your friends? Your home?"

"If you're what I get out of the deal? Yeah, I'd do it in a heartbeat. What about you? Truth be told, you'd be the one giving up a lot more." Tim might not know it, but Gibbs knew Vance was seeing the younger man as a successor someday.

Still timid, McGee lowered his face to rest his forehead on Gibbs'. "The only thing that has kept me in DC all these years, Jethro, is you."

-NCIS-

Ganlok paced in his small control room, the few Jaffa under his power keeping well out of his way. Over one hundred and fifty Earth years ago, Ra had condemned him to death after a failed mission. It had only been dumb luck that he'd landed on a a backwards planet forgotten by the System Lords. A beautiful woman had taken him in and nursed him back to health. Not knowing about the symbiote inside him, she believed it was their strange worship of the land that had saved him.

They were a strange, primitive people without a clue to the true value of the gems they casually made into tawdry jewelry and decorated their walls. By the time he'd had his ship repaired and space worthy again he'd amassed enough gems to buy himself honor and prestige, but Ra was still a threat. Biding his time he'd used that first wealth to gather weapons to take over the planet and this time the wealth he'd gathered would buy him not only prestige, but now that Ra was dead, a place at the table as a System Lord himself.

Now, on the verge of his triumphant grasp of power something has gone wrong. Waving his hand over the control screen, it remained dead. There was only one thing left to do. "Prepare my ship, we leave immediately."


	12. Chapter 12

His internal clock was confused, but Gibbs woke as the first morning light touched his face. Jack was on watch and softly called out to him. "Second sunrise is officially morning around here."

Gibbs nodded and let his head drop back down, but he didn't close his eyes. Instead, he looked around at this strange new world and marveled. Even the air smelled different than anywhere he'd been back on Earth. There was no sign of the creature he'd seen the night before, but strange, long necked birds flew through the morning sky, swooping down as they caught something too small to be seen by the naked eye. They reminded him of heron back home, but their heads were the wrong shape and their undersides were the most unusual color of orange he'd ever seen. Hunt successful, one of the birds glided down to a branch on a distance tree. As he watched, it settled, hanging upside down, the orange disappearing as the wings wrapped around its body. Now that it was perched, the only color visible was the dull green of its wings and back. Gibbs realized he'd seen several of these birds the day before as they hiked from the Stargate, but hadn't known what they were.

They hadn't slept long, but Gibbs was wide awake. He and Tim had stayed awake for hours watching the stars. As Jack had promised, neither of them could find a single constellation they recognized. It was thrilling and at the same time somewhat terrifying to realize how far away they were from their entire home planet. In battle there was always the possibility of getting separated from your squad, and sometimes that meant a long hike, but there was always a way to get back home.

Here, there would be no walking across a desert to find friendlies. No radioing in coordinates for a helicopter to swoop in and pick you up. Everything depended on a piece of alien technology that was thousands of years old. One that nobody on Earth fully understood. Gibbs couldn't quite suppress the shudder and Tim turned in his arms.

"You okay? Are you in pain? Do you want me to..."

Gibbs stopped the questions by pulling him close, resting his cheek on the top of Tim's head. "I'm fine. Go back to sleep, okay?" He couldn't explain his one greatest fear – being in a situation where he had absolutely no control over what happened to the people he loved. He got his team out of Somalia, he got Tim safely out of a hostage situation, but without that Gate, he had no way of getting them safely back to Earth.

"I can't sleep, you're thinking too loud."

The faintest smile crossed Gibbs' lips. "Do you completely understand how the Stargate works? All the mechanics?"

"Right now? No. Would I love to study it? You bet." Tim pulled back and shifted so he was on his side, facing Gibbs, his head resting on his hand. "What's going on?"

"If we ever decide to do this, I want you to fully master it, okay? Even if it means we spend a couple of years someplace so you can pick up another degree."

Before Tim could answer him, Daniel called out. "Hey, you guys gotta watch this." They both raised up and turned to watch as the second sun came over the horizon. The sky had been pale, almost colorless, before but as the light waves from the two suns crossed swirls of color appeared. It was like a daytime version of the Northern Lights with every color of the spectrum dancing from horizon to horizon, until the sky finally settled into the green they'd become accustomed to seeing.

"Wow, now that's a sunrise." Tim was grinning in delight and awe as he sat up. Even Gibbs was impressed, even if he was still worried about the many unknowns they were still facing.

After the show, they didn't waste anymore time and McGee started working on the controls while still eating the energy bar someone had tossed him while Major Carter started taking apart one of the drones to figure out how they worked. Gibbs detoured to get a morning cup of coffee before he joined McGee, taking a few swallows before handing it over to the other man.

There were wires and cables surrounding the younger man and he was studying something on the screen of his computer while the alien console remained dark. "What's all this?"

"We broke the encryption, but now we need to learn their programming language. I've got my computer analyzing it, been running all night. Once that's done, we'll not only be able to make sure this can't be reactivated, but it will get the Stargate program one step closer to defending themselves against this kind of weaponry in the future."

Twenty minutes later, Carter jumped back as the drone she was examining started to vibrate. "McGee, tell me that was something you did."

Tim was already running a diagnostic. "There's an incoming signal. Somebody is trying to reactivate the weapons." He quickly typed a series of commands and the drone stilled, but a few seconds later several others started to come on line. Again, McGee was able to shut them down but he looked up, worried. "The incoming signal is gaining strength. Wherever he is, he's getting closer. I may not be able to block him for long."

"It's getting closer." O'Neill raised his weapon as he started scanning the sky. "Stay alert, we've probably got an incoming. Carter, have you figured out enough about those things to pull the wire on their receiver?"

"Yes, but it won't be quick."

"Yeah, but each one you ground is one less signal for McGee to have to jam."

Sparing a quick glance at McGee as he worked to block the attacking signal, Carter nodded and grabbed Daniel. After he'd seen one done, he could help her while the rest took on the Ashrak in a more direct manner.

The rest spread out in a ring all watching for any sign of the Ashrak. Gibbs realized he didn't know what one looked like, but he'd figure it out as they went. It took a while to spot the incoming Ashrak, but the increasing strength of the attempts gave them a gauge of the speed at which it traveled. The last attempt had a large number of the drones almost a foot off the ground before McGee was able to regain control of them.

Carter and Daniel Jackson worked as fast as they could, but the drones were not designed to need physical maintenance and had no planned access port. They had to use hand held plasma cutters to get through the harden cases and that took time.

One of the Marines opened fire on a drone next to him. He was able to drop it back to the ground, but a ricocheting bullet caught him in the leg.

"Shit." O'Neill grabbed a medical pack and started packing the wound. "Carter, why are these things harder to hit when they're sitting still?"

She didn't look up as she yelled back. "Our bullets weren't actually penetrating the hulls, Sir. They were overloading the shields and frying them from the inside, but they're self-repairing."

"Would have been nice to know that yesterday, Carter."

"Yes, Sir." She continued to work. So far they'd disabled four drones, a drop in the bucket of what they needed.

"There." Anderson pointed at a growing speck in the sky and Teal'c looked through a scope.

"It is a Death Glider, but there is only one."

With a name like Death Glider, Gibbs was pretty sure that one was more than enough. He moved to position himself between McGee and the incoming ship. "McGee, keep your head down."

Tim didn't need to be told twice. Remembering a lifetime ago when he'd been trying to take control of a drone Ari had loaded with explosives, he tightened the chin strap on his helmet and made himself as small of a target as possible with the computer securely on his lap as he typed. With only a vague awareness of the shooting going on around him, he battled wave after wave of incoming signals for control of the drones.

-NCIS-

Angry at the group of unknown fighters that dared to challenge him, Ganlok planned his strategy as they approached the heart of his control. He watched as the man worked the controls and stopped his weapons. "You will be mine, Tau'ri. I will show you what I do to those who challenge me." He barked out orders to his co-pilot as they turned to attack.

-NCIS-

"They're lining up for a strafing run." From the back of the FRED, Anderson was handing out stacks of magazines for the P90's and he tossed Gibbs one of the heavier weapons. "I hear you're a sniper."

Gibbs took the offered long rifle. It looked like a TAC-50, but the stock was heavier, more ergonomic. He pulled it tight against his shoulder and smiled. "All right." This sniper rifle was heavier than any Gibbs had fired in the past, but the attached tripod would support the weight.

A couple of clips were offered next, each holding five rounds. The fifty caliber round was massive under any circumstances, but these were the largest rounds Gibbs had ever seen, packed with the maximum amount of powder the modified weapon could handle Anderson filled in the details. "For a kill shot, it's accurate up to twenty-five hundred meters, but if you can keep it under two thousand meters, there's still enough power behind it to rip through six inches of the best Gao'uld plating out there."

Gibbs let out a low whistle as the Marine he'd met last night came up to the FRED and was handed a shoulder launched missile. The younger man grinned at Gibbs as he hefted the weapon up onto his shoulder. "The only spot on a Death Glider with plating that thin is on the back side between the exhaust ports, so you can have him if I miss."

"Or the unshielded part of the front window, Lopez." Anderson reminded the Corporal as he hopped down off the FRED. "A sniper might be able to make that shot, but he'd have to find someplace with elevation to get a straight enough shot. Otherwise it will just bounce off."

Taking the lessons to heart, Gibbs looked around for a spot. They were in a valley so his options were limited, but climbing up to the top of the rock formation that held the entrance to the cave looked like a good option. Anderson saw his plan and nodded his approval. "Climb it from the north side, I'll try to give you cover."

Gibbs gave a short nod as he took off running. Out of the corner of his eye he could see McGee still battling the Ashrak over the control of the drones. He knew that Tim would be one of the assassin's first targets unless somebody stopped him first.

The first pass of the Death Glider happened so fast none of them were ready, the energy bolts coming within inches of the control panel McGee was crouched behind. Almost a dozen of the drones started to lift at the same time, but McGee had them back under his control before the Death Glider could circle around.

Gibbs wasn't in position yet, but down on the ground, he saw Lopez taking aim with the missile. "Come on, kid, take him down." He continued to climb, the rifle slamming into his back with every step.

Below him, Lopez was in an old crater, carefully lining up the sights on the fast moving craft. The weapon's electronic sights gave him a confirmation signal and he squeezed the trigger. It was the longest three seconds Gibbs could remember until the missile impacted with the spacecraft, but the resulting explosion was magnificent. They watched as it banked sharply and headed down for what they were sure would be a crash landing, smoke pouring out of the back end.

Everyone waited breathlessly for the sound of impact. When it was too long, Gibbs finished setting up the sniper rifle, slamming the magazine into place as he heard the sound of an engine coming closer. Sure enough, seconds later, the Death Glider burst into the open. Still heavily smoking from the previous damage, it was heading straight for McGee and the controls.

Blocking everything else out, Gibbs took a deep breath. He looked carefully down the sights until the cross-hairs lined up exactly with the windshield of the craft and through that, the helmet of the single pilot. Now was the time and he took another calming breath and let it out halfway before barely touching the trigger. He didn't move, didn't blink, until the bullet shattered the window and Gibbs saw the pilot's head snap back.

Once again the Death Glider banked and turned sharply, vanishing over a ridge. However this time the disappearance was followed by an impact and explosion that rocked the ground. A cheer went up, but all Gibbs noticed was the smile on McGee's face. Giving him a slight nod, Gibbs started the trek back down.

-NCIS-

Ganlok cursed when the explosion engulfed his ship in flames, but luckily the shields held. Even then, it took a few seconds for the shorted out systems to come back online. By then he was out of view of the enemy and he continued to let his ship lose altitude.

"Master?"

"Continue the attack, I have other plans." Personal shields were only for the System Lords, but Ganlok had managed to cobble one together using the energy crystal that powered the shield on his glider. Silently, he pulled the crystal out of the controls and slid it into his body armor. He hated to lose the glider and his faithful Jaffa had been with him a very long time, but he looked forward to killing that Tau'ri, that human, in a more personal manner.

The glider skimmed along the ground and slowed momentarily before it gained speed and returned to the fight with only one pilot at the controls.

* * *

a/n - Finished this last night, so chapter a day until we hit 14. Yeah, I left it wide open for a sequel since I had a blast with this universe. I'll be finishing some other things first, though.


	13. Chapter 13

Two Marines and Dr. Jackson stayed behind with McGee while the rest went after the downed craft. From on top of the rock formation, Gibbs watched them, but his gut was telling him to stay close. Down below he watched as McGee studied the readings on his computer, leaning close as something apparently didn't add up. Gibbs had seen that expression before and was watching him so intently while he climbed down that he almost missed when one of the drones began to vibrate. It stopped before Gibbs could take another step, but he continued to split his attention between the drones and the loose rocks as he made his way back down.

-NCIS-

"It's over there, Sir." Carter couldn't quite hide her excitement. It was a rare day when they had the chance to get their hands on a Death Glider, even a badly damaged one, as the pilots were trained to use the self destruct mechanism rather than let it fall into enemy hands. She'd heard enough of them to know that the explosion they'd heard was from an impact, not from an overheating naquadah reactor.

"Slow down, Carter." O'Neill was fully aware of the potential of this find, but he didn't want to get them all blown up, either. They approached cautiously, weapons raised.

One of the Marines whistled. "Now that's a shot."

Jack had to agree with him. A hole dead center in the front window matched up with a hole in the center of the pilot's forehead. Blood covered his face, pooling on his clothing and on the floor of the glider.

"Is that too much damage for the Gao'uld to heal his host?"

Jack looked over his shoulder, it was one of the newer members of the Marine unit, PFC Hales. He reviewed Hales' service record and realized this was his first mission where he'd come face to face with a Gao'uld, let alone an Ashrak.

Hales was obviously nervous, looking around as he stood perfectly still. "It's not going to look for a new host, is it?"

Teal'c was carefully studying the body and reached forward to grasp the dead man's hand. He held it up for the rest to see. "He does not wear the Hara'kesh, the ring of the Ashrak."

Jack immediately checked the other hand. It, too, was bare. "They always wear that ring. Maybe the demon wasn't an Ashrak?"

"Perhaps." Teal'c had been studying the body and tugged the shirt to one side, revealing an X-shaped opening in his abdomen. The head of a dying infant Gao'uld could be seen and Hales shuddered and stepped back. "However, I do not believe the demon was a Jaffa and I have never known of a Death Glider to be piloted by only one being."

Gunfire back at the battle site stopped anything else any of them might have said and the reappearance of the drones kept them busy.

-NCIS-

The safest path back down to the ground put Gibbs too far to the side to stay in visual contact with McGee. He was tempted to slide down the face of the rock, but he wouldn't do Tim any good with a broken neck. By the time he was down and back around, a tall man with bronze skin was charging at McGee, a staff weapon in his hand. Rather than running, Tim was holding his ground as every wave of the man's hand brought more of the drones back to life and McGee was doing everything he could to block the signal.

The two Marines opened fire on the alien, but a sphere of glowing energy seemed to surround him and the bullets pinged harmlessly away, falling to the ground as he walked past them. The Ashrak fired at them with his staff, hitting them both. Ducking behind a pile of rocks, Gibbs tried with his sniper rifle and hoped that the massive power in the casings would drive the bullets past the shield. The only thing they did was bounce further off the shield. Without a clear shot at him, the Ashrak dismissed Gibbs and continued toward his goal

"Damn it, Tim, run!" A drone raised up in front of Gibbs and managed to fire off several shots before McGee brought it under control. Gibbs had to dive out of the way and by the time he rolled to his feet, the Ashrak was within feet of McGee. "No!"

Instead of running, Tim keyed in the last command, smiling at the realization on the Ashrak's face that he'd permanently lost control of the drones. With his other hand, McGee brought up his sidearm, but the Ashrak had stopped short and the shield was still between them.

The Ashrak raised his right hand and the large ring nestled against his palm began to glow. Outgoing weaponry wasn't affected by the shield at all and the beam of energy caught McGee and threw him down to the ground. The Ashrak stepped closer, capturing McGee inside his shield. The energy beam from his ring hit McGee on the forehead and he writhed and screamed in agony, unable to get away.

Desperate to distract the Ashrak, Gibbs raised his rifle to fire again. Daniel had been circling around and was now close enough to yell at Gibbs. "Don't shoot, the more kinetic energy of the attack, the stronger the shield. It'll never get through. You're better off throwing a rock."

"I have to do something." Again, he raised the rifle. Even if he was just an annoyance, it might give McGee a few extra seconds. Before he could fire, Daniel's words penetrated his head and instead, Gibbs pulled out his knife.

-NCIS-

Ganlok was furious, but he had the Tau'ri in his grasp. The ring could kill instantly, or it could kill slowly and painfully. He was enjoying the pained screams of his prey, but even more, he was enjoying the angered yells of the man helpless outside the shield. Enjoying the dual torment, Ganlok wasn't aware he had a problem until the knife hit his throat.

-NCIS-

It wasn't a rock, but Gibbs' k-bar blade slipped easily through the shield and found its target. Gibbs had a moment of perverse pleasure at the expression on the alien's face when the blade sliced into his airway, but he was more happy to see the energy beam drop away and Tim collapse to the ground. As Gibbs edged closer, the Ashrak gave him a bloody smile, reaching up to pull out the knife. The blood spurted freely even as the symbiote inside the Ashrak worked to close the wound.

Giving one last glance at Gibbs, the Ashrak turned his attention back to McGee, laughing at the weak cry as the energy beam resumed and he went limp. By now, Gibbs was at the edge of the shield. He could feel the static charge it gave off, raising the hair on his arms. Slowly, he pushed the tip of his rifle barrel through the shield. Just like the knife, the lower energy and speed made it possible to breech the shield. He kept pushing it forward until the magazine made it through and then pulled the trigger over and over until it was empty. When the Ashrak fell to the ground, the shield collapsed around him.

Gibbs saw it flicker, the only time it was fully visible, and cautiously stepped in. When he wasn't stopped, he dropped the clip out of the rifle and slammed another one in as he stopped next to the Ashrak. Four fifty caliber rounds had done a number on the body, but Gibbs wasn't convinced it was over. He watched and a black serpent like creature crawled out of what was left of the Ashrak's chest. Gibbs shot it, watching the impact toss it into the air. A second and third shot reduced it to a twitching pulp and Gibbs stepped down on the head, enjoying the satisfying sound it made as it crunched under his heel. Only then was he convinced that it was over.

Letting his rifle slide out of suddenly numb hands, Gibbs stepped over the body of the Ashrak, determined that no one else would handle McGee's body. He dropped to his knees and gathered Tim into his arms, holding him close. He didn't even notice Daniel at his side until the other man jabbed McGee with a syringe.

"He's not..."

Daniel was checking McGee's pupils, then his pulse. Not ready to give up, he pulled another syringe out of the medical kit and plunged it again into Tim's neck, needing the drugs to reach his brain in a hurry. "Maybe, but we've got to hurry." He looked up and saw the rest of the team returning and waved them over. "We need to get him through the Gate, now."

-NCIS-

Gibbs sat in a chair outside the infirmary. It had been a chaotic few hours as they'd carried McGee and one of the more injured Marines to the FRED, then the mad rush back to the Gate. Everyone was now back, even the hostages, and they were just waiting for word on the injured. He was vaguely aware of movement to his side, then a cup of coffee appeared under his nose.

"Here, thought you could use this." Once Gibbs had taken the cup, Jack sat in the chair next to him.

"Thanks." Gibbs stared into the cup without taking a sip, remembering what Jack had told him about the weapon that could practically melt a human's brain. "I thought I saw him die. That beam was right on his forehead and he was in so much pain. God, so much pain, and then he went limp."

Jack knew he should warn Gibbs that McGee could still die, that surviving and recovering weren't necessarily the same. Instead, he laid his hand on his arm. "Tim's strong, he's real strong."

The question of whether being strong was enough went unanswered as they fell silent again, waiting for word. Another hour passed before Dr. Fraiser came out. Jack stood up as she joined them. "Janet, how is he?"

She sat in the chair O'Neill had vacated and spoke gently to Gibbs. "He's stable, we're just waiting for him to wake up. I can't do a full assessment until he's awake, but I don't see any indication of permanent brain damage."

Gibbs sagged in relief and nodded, unable to speak past the lump in his throat. Understanding, she patted his arm as she stood. "You can come sit with him if you like. It'll probably do him good to wake up to a familiar face."

She didn't have to ask twice and a few minutes later he found himself sitting at Tim's bedside. Tim was pale, paler than he'd ever seen anyone still alive, which made the burn on his forehead even more apparent. The one physical sign that Gibbs struggled with was the newly gray hair at his temples, a testament to the strain his body had been under. For now, Gibbs cupped McGee's cheek in his hand and relished the feel of warm, living skin. He was still sitting like that when he felt McGee stir.

"Tim? Tim, you back with us?" He watched, worried until the green eyes focused on him. "Hey, how you feeling?"

"Sore, really sore." Tim's voice was raspy and Gibbs held a glass of water for him. After sipping some water through the straw, he tried again. "Did we stop him?"

"Yeah, we sure did." Gibbs watched as Tim struggled to keep his eyes open. "Hey, just stay awake long enough for the doctor to check you over, okay?"

Tim nodded slowly. "Yeah, sure. Can I sit up?"

Gibbs looked at Dr. Fraiser, who nodded. With her approval, he lifted Tim up and slid in back of him. "How's that?"

"Nice." Tim smiled, enjoying the comfort of the strong arms around him, keeping him safe. The exam was mercifully brief before she smiled, brushing his hair back.

"Everything looks good, Tim. It might be a few weeks, or even a month before you regain your full strength, but you should make a complete recovery. Just give yourself some time, okay? Pushing it will just slow your recovery down."

"He'll take it easy. I'll make sure of it."

Janet recognized the fear that was still in those intense blue eyes. "Let Jethro take care of you, Tim. It will do you both some good, okay?"

"Can we go home?"

Home sounded like a very good idea as Gibbs tried to give her an encouraging smile. "He'll be staying with me."

Janet bit back a smile at the two hopeful faces. If she were Gibbs, she'd want the patient all to herself, too. "Sure, but no sex until you get the all clear. I'll fly out later and check on you."

Tim looked a little disappointed at the no sex, but Gibbs wasn't arguing. "We won't do anything to jeopardize his recovery, but it'll be good to be home. Maybe rent a vacation home on a lake for a few days."

Janet laughed at that. "The Colonel and Daniel may even come out and join you for that." She laughed even harder at the expression on Gibbs' face. "But I'll tell them they have to rent their own cabin." Satisfied, she stood up. "We'll let you get some rest. Just push the call button if either of you need anything."

Once they were alone, Gibbs let some of his worry show through. "You sure you're all right? Are you having trouble breathing? Is that why you wanted to sit up?"

Tim shuddered as he remembered the freezing cold pain that felt like his soul was being ripped out of his body. "I just need your arms around me."

Gibbs tightened his grasp and bent down to kiss the top of his head, carefully avoiding the burns. "You got it, babe, forever and always."

* * *

a/n - One more chapter after this. I could have added lots more, but midnight on April 30th was the deadline. I made it by three hours. Everything combined, I wrote over 37,000 words for the month of April.


	14. Chapter 14

Epilogue

Rob Dickerson slowly came down the stairs carrying the breakfast tray his wife had barely touched. There was a gentle knock on the door. He almost ignored it, but habit dragged him to the door. Convinced that it was a neighborhood kid, he flung the door open and gasped. "Bobby?"

"Hey Dad."

He was balanced on a pair of crutches and looked tired, but his father was just glad to see him and threw his arms around him. "Thank God."

"And Gibbs." At his son's comment, Rob looked up and saw his old friend standing next to a black sedan, another man in the passenger seat. Gibbs looked tired, but gave Rob a brief nod before climbing into the car and pulling away.

-NCIS-

"You sure you're up to this? We can put it off for a few days."

Tim rolled his head on the headrest to look at Gibbs. "Nah, the longer we wait, the worse it'll be. Abby's going to freak out as it is."

Surprisingly, it had been the hair that had upset McGee the most and Gibbs touched the silver streaks. "You could go get it dyed, you know."

"And then the first time we're swamped with a case and the roots show before I can get it touched up, Tony will never let me hear the end of it. No, I'm not going to fight it."

Gibbs gave him a sly grin as they turned into the Navy Yard. "At least now I don't look like a cradle robber." Tim laughed and rolled his eyes.

"Funny, Jethro."

-NCIS-

Tony looked up as the Secretary of the Navy exited the elevator upstairs and walked across to Vance's office. He was sitting on the corner of Ziva's desk and could only see his legs, but he'd recognize that stride anywhere. Making a decision, Tony stood, getting the attention of Ziva and Abby. "Jarvis is here, maybe he knows something."

Neither of the women were convinced it was a good idea, but they followed Tony up the stairs. Apparently Vance wasn't surprised as he was holding the door open for them. Abby looked ready to burst into tears. "Is there any word?"

Jarvis looked pleased. "Well, I've received calls of thanks from the Joint Chiefs and the President for whatever they've done and the Secretary of the Air Force sent his personal jet to bring them back from Colorado."

"They're back?" Abby jumped to her feet and Tony put himself between her and Jarvis. However, it was the arrival of the elevator that saved the SecNav more than anything. They heard the familiar voices and moments later, Gibbs walked into the room, pushing McGee in a wheelchair.

McGee's appearance stunned them all into silence, but eventually Abby walked over and reached out to touch him. "Oh, Timmy, what did they do to you?"

Gibbs took her hand before she could touch McGee. "We can't talk about it, Abs."

"But they hurt him, Gibbs. What about you, did they hurt you, too?" She started to check him over, but Gibbs just held her hands.

"I'm fine and Tim will be fine. He just needs a few weeks to recover." Gibbs looked at the rest of his team. "We just stopped so that you could see for yourself that we're basically all right. Now we're going to go home and get some rest."

There was something obviously different, but Tony couldn't quite put his finger on it so Ziva was the one to ask the question. "Is McGee going to be staying at your house? For how long?"

To everyone's surprise, Gibbs took McGee's hand and squeezed it. "For as long as he'll have me."

That got a reaction out of DiNozzo. "You and McGee? You and McGeek? How in the hell did that happen?"

Gibbs bristled a little bit at the questions, but Tim squeezed his hand and he took a deep breath. "This weekend proved to us that waiting isn't living, so instead, we're going to live our lives to the fullest everyday, together."

Multiple heads swiveled around to see the SecNav's reaction. He just grunted. "As I've been informed, people in high places support this latest development and I'm not to interfere." Apparently Vance had gotten the same memo because he just nodded without a word.

Tony watched the reactions and shrugged. "Well, then, we're happy for you guys. You need some help getting home and settled in? Nothing personal, Boss, but you don't look like you're up to carrying Tiny Tim here up the stairs right now."

Gibbs looked at Tim for a moment. Tim nodded and Gibbs turned back to DiNozzo. "Sure, Tony, that would be great." When Ziva offered for her and Abby to bring food, Gibbs shook his head, knowing that it would be easier to deal with them separately. "Tomorrow, ladies. Today we're just going to sleep."

Abby looked disappointed, but Ziva gave an understanding smile. "Of course, Gibbs. It is obvious that whatever has happened was extremely difficult. Abby and I will bring dinner over tomorrow night."

-NCIS-

Even though Gibbs was waiting for it, Tony didn't question him until after McGee was taken upstairs and they were alone. Down in the kitchen while Gibbs made coffee, Tony decided to take a stand. "Listen, I don't know what happened between the two of you this weekend, but just looking at McGee, I know that it was pretty bad."

Gibbs thought back, remembering the whispered confessions of love, the gentle touches, the promises of something more. "Not all of it was bad, Tony. Some of it was very, very good."

"Okay." Tony waved his hands in front of his face. "I really don't need the visual, okay? Just answer me this – have you guys really thought about this? I mean, you're not exactly the kind of guy that does the whole jumping into a relationship thing – even though that would explain all the divorces."

When Gibbs glared at him, Tony got back on track. "I mean, at what point did you look at McGee and say to yourself, that's what I want?"

"Norfolk." When he got a blank look, Gibbs gave him a few more details. "That first case. I had him scared to death, but he wouldn't back down. Gave me that determined look... Shannon used to give me the same look."

"Wow, really?" Tony stared at him and then shrugged. "Okay, then, I guess I can't accuse you of rushing into anything."

Gibbs grinned at that. "According to Tim, if we went any slower, we'd be going backwards."

"Well, I love you guys, you know that, right?"

"Yeah."

"But I gotta tease McGee."

"Yeah."

"And give you crap."

This time it was slower. "Yeah."

"And..."

"Get a lot of head slaps?"

"I'll be going now, Boss." Laughing, he was almost to the door before Gibbs said anything.

"Thanks, Tony, for everything." After Tony left, Gibbs made two cups of coffee and took them upstairs where the rest of his life was waiting for him.

* * *

a/n - Here it is, the final chapter. I'll be playing in this universe again, don't worry. Well, if you guys are interested. After all, the NID office is right in DC, so things could get quite interesting. I'm working on Catalyst, as promised, but I'm also pushing on a WIP that was promised to TaylorGibbs. Since this weekend is her birthday, I thought I'd surprise her. I have one new chapter of her story finished and the next almost done. It's not posted here, so that's a total of seven chapters you guys haven't seen yet. By Sunday night, I'll be very much on the downhill side of that one.


End file.
